Francesco Bagnaia: “Ducati is with me 100% – We have to solve this situation” after Sprint
After the dust settled, Francesco Bagnaia explained his frustration after a disappointing day at Silverstone.
The Ducati rider started third on the grid and, for the first time this season, ahead of Marc Marquez.
But his team-mate overtook him in the first corner and went ahead alongside Alex Marquez, leaving the Italian two-time champion behind. Bagnaia said: “Qualifying went quite well, we got a good position on the front row, but from mid-race onwards it got really complicated.
“In qualifying we were competitive, although we were still half a second off pole. In the race the start was acceptable, I managed to overtake Fabio Quartararo thanks to a mistake he made and I tried to follow the pace of the leaders, but I couldn’t ride like them, especially Alex. Marquez was smarter, he stayed behind and after four laps my rear tyre was completely destroyed, with no grip.”
Bagnaia says his problems are still caused by the front end of the GP25. He explains: “It all comes from a lack of confidence with the front; not being able to brake like I need to, I was always going a bit long to turn the bike and had to rely on the rear tyre, which ended up wearing out.
“From then on, it was a race of survival. I was losing the bike at the entrance of the corners and every time I opened the throttle it was going backwards, losing a lot of time. Johann Zarco passed me in an incredible way. There is work to do, as always.
“I expected certain difficulties, but this has exceeded expectations. I knew I could fight for third because I also sensed that Fabio [Di Giannantonio] would end up overtaking me one way or another and that Alex would have a far superior pace, as he has shown all weekend.
“But after four laps I understood that I had to move fast because the guys behind me were coming and they passed me as if I was not on the track. It was more difficult than I imagined.”
Despite the circumstances, Pecco feels the factory’s backing ahead of the British GP.
He said: “Ducati is with me 100%. We are all trying to solve this situation because it is a defeat for everyone.”
In this article
Germán Garcia Casanova
MotoGP
Francesco Bagnaia
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