Jorge Lorenzo and the Yamaha they know what it takes to win a world title. The Spanish rider has won the crown of MotoGP champion three times on the bike of the Japanese manufacturer, remaining the last world champion in Yamaha’s history until last year’s success in Fabio Quartararo. The Frenchman has broken a curse that had lasted for the Iwata team since 2015 and his goal this year was to hit a historic encore. But if mid-season the title seemed to be firmly in the hands of the Diablo Nice, now the situation has become quite complicated. Quartararo and Yamaha in fact threw away an 89-point lead over Pecco Bagnaia in just seven races, reducing their margin over the top Ducati rider to just two points.
The Borgo Panigale bike has absolutely dominated the season and before Oliveira’s success in Thailand, riding a KTM, it could boast an open row of six consecutive successes with its riders. For all these reasons, many believe Bagnaia the logical favorite for the championship victory in this final rush of three races. Lorenzo himself has made it clear that he aligns himself with this thought, precisely by virtue of the greater competitiveness of the Italian bike compared to the Japanese one.
Interviewed by the site The Race the Majorcan had no qualms in defining the one led by Bagnaia and his companions as the “best Ducati ever“. “I think we are seeing the best Ducati ever – explained Lorenzo – and probably the weakest Yamaha of the last 15 years. It is difficult for Fabio to go on and stay alive until the end, but he is doing the best of him. I think he only made two mistakes this year, in Assen and in the rain in Thailand. But sometimes he does real magic with his bike“.
Lorenzo’s appreciation of the GP22’s performance, however, does not imply that the former Martillo wants to diminish the talent of Pecco Bagnaia, author of a season with two faces but now one step away from reaching a goal that Italy has lacked since the golden years of Valentino Rossi. “Pecco has matured a lot this year. Sometimes he is not fast enough on Fridays, but with patience and maturity he manages to find something with the team to be competitive in PL4 or even in qualifying. This shows that he has matured – concluded Lorenzo – and right now they are a very strong combination: Ducati with the best bike and Pecco, probably together with Marc and Fabio, is one of the three best riders“.
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