Seven Ducatis in the first eight places. A figure that seems to further underline the overwhelming power of the Rosse di Borgo Panigale at the Red Bull Ring, which has not been weakened by the inclusion of the chicane on the straight leading to turn 3. If many have stopped at this first reading, there is even those who wanted to enhance another aspect: that to put so many bikes in front, you also need riders who are up to it.
This is the thought of Pecco Bagnaia, now fifth to just over a tenth, who believes that it is undeniable that Ducati is a great bike at the moment, but that it also has a package of riders who are good at pulling out all the potential.
“How many strong riders does Ducati have: I think they are all among the best on the grid and there is a balance of performance that is truly incredible. It is certainly a bike that works very well at the moment, especially on a track like this, and all Ducati riders can aim to win, because they are really strong “.
Having such strong teammates can also be a spur to always push yourself to the limit, so it’s an advantage according to the reigning vice-champion of the world.
“It is certainly a great stimulus, because we are always there in front and I think ours is the only brand that has all the riders so competitive. It is something that stimulates the work a lot and speeds it up in some situations. In others it can also be a problem, but right now it’s not my case. “
The ducatista joined the chorus of drivers who promoted the new chicane of the Austrian track, although according to him there are at least a couple of aspects that could be improved further. Overall, however, he seems satisfied with the work done.
“The chicane is not bad, they studied it well enough for the space that was there. Surely the wall on the left is not the best, because it is very close. If you go straight fast, you have a hard time avoiding it. they put in the middle of the track are not the best: today I went to gravel and he was taking me right there, so we will talk about it in the Safety Commission.
On the other hand, rival Fabio Quartararo said he sees the new layout more suited to his Yamaha, because it favors the engine less: “I’m always very skeptical when I hear these things, because last year Fabio was fighting for the victory and the Yamaha loses 2 km / h on the straight here, so I don’t think they have any speed problems. On this track I don’t think their problem is top speed. “
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
The topic of the day, however, was undoubtedly the new format that should come into force next year and will be announced tomorrow, which in all likelihood should include the introduction of a Sprint Race on Saturday, but unlike Formula 1 every weekend.
“I don’t know if I can like it or not. We will have to understand how they intend to do it: if they will do it in all the tracks, if they want to shorten the main race. There are many things to understand, because mentally it will be hard to do a season with as many races like this. “.
The problem according to Pecco is that not all tracks lend themselves to a double race: “If you happen to do a Sprint Race in Austin and the day after the long race, it’s definitely not a simple thing. That’s a devastating track, both mentally and physically. Doing two races in a weekend would be tough: it is true that it would be like doing a long run, but it counts for more than one in practice, so mentally it is totally different from FP4. Let’s see what they will tell us. ” .
When he was then asked whether it is right that the riders can have a say in such a radical change, he added: “It depends on your point of view. We are here because we have to race on motorcycles and there are people who decide for us. , like in Formula 1. Let’s say that this is a fairly important decision and I didn’t know anything about it until today. We’ll see what the other drivers will think too, but in certain situations our voice should count for a bit “.
#MotoGP #Bagnaia #Sprint #Race #drivers #voice #count