Martin -3 from Bagnaia
After the double in Japan Jorge Martin moved to just three points behind Francesco Bagnaia in the standings and on the horizon is the Mandalika event in Indonesia, where a year ago Jorge Martin crashed in the race after taking second place in Qualifying (Bagnaia finished in 15th position at the end of an overall difficult weekend). In the last races the Pramac rider has recovered 65 points from the reigning world champion and it is natural for Martin to believe in a miracle although he has already declared on several occasions that the title should not be an objective within his reach given that he is not an official rider.
Paolo CiabattiDucati Sporting Director, underlined that the Spaniard must not experience any ‘inferiority complex’ compared to Francesco Bagnaia: “He has an official rider contract and bike – said Ciabatti as reported by the newspaper AS – there are seven Ducati people inside his garage and if we were afraid that they would win in Pramac we wouldn’t give them this treatment.”
Obviously, in the event of a world championship victory by Martin, it would not be easy for Ducati to explain why the rider did not win within the factory team to the latter’s sponsors: “It’s obvious that Davide Tardozzi, for example, as team manager of the official team, cares that that team wins – added Ciabatti – the factory team has responsibilities towards the sponsors. This is why I would like Pecco to win, but if Jorge wins because he is better, he still has a motorbike and an official rider contract.”
Gigi Dall’Igna, General Director of Ducati, underlined that as long as he is in command, the best rider will win. Dall’Igna also has great respect for Martin who lost the run-off to Enea Bastianini a year ago in the two-way race for the official rider’s seat alongside Francesco Bagnaia. However, Martinator has been reborn in 2023 and now has the luxury of competing for the title without the pressure of those who have the official team on their shoulders. The Pramac team will certainly get their hands on the team title in light of Enea Bastianini’s difficulties, while between Bagnaia and Martin it will probably be a one-on-one battle until Valencia.
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