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Ducati MotoGP star Andrea Dovizioso completes first Audi DTM test

Ducati MotoGP star Andrea Dovizioso has completed a full Audi DTM test alongside Mattias Ekstrom at Misano ahead of his guest race appearance at the circuit

Dovizioso was revealed as Audi's guest driver for the DTM's Italian round earlier this month, replacing the unavailable Pietro Fittipaldi at WRT in a one-off move.

Last year's MotoGP runner-up has already sampled the RS5 DTM at Audi's Motorsport Competence Centre in Neuberg.

In his latest test at Misano, Dovizioso was guided by two-time DTM champion Ekstrom, who last raced in the series when he performed a farewell weekend at Hockenheim in early 2018 in a guest drive outing.

Ekstrom is currently without a works programme but remains affiliated to Audi.

"It was really important for me to test here at Misano, because the level is extremely high in the DTM and there are many things to manage while you're at the wheel," said Dovizioso.

"With the help of the team and Mattias Ekstrom, I clocked many laps to get as close as possible to the frontrunners."

The DTM had intended for Dovizioso to race against fellow MotoGP star Valentino Rossi, but a plan to place the Yamaha rider in a BMW fell through.

BMW told Autosport at Zolder last weekend that is still considering its options for the guest driver slot after it used last year's Misano race to give Alex Zanardi a popular DTM outing.

Aston Martin has also previously told Autosport that it is "open-minded" about running a guest driver this season despite the late build of its Aston Martin Vantages.

The DTM's new-for-2018 guest driver ruling has been used to help its presence outside of its German core audience, with World Rally champion Sebastien Ogier's cameo at the Red Bull Ring for Mercedes in 2018 another example of the series' ambitions.

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