Assen is a Sunday that Pecco Bagnaia will certainly struggle to forget and not only because it risks becoming a fundamental stage in the chase for his third consecutive MotoGP world title. However, three is a recurring number today. Three, like the consecutive victories this season. Three, like those lined up at Assen, giving life to a hat-trick that no one has managed since Mick Doohan. To mention two big names, not even Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez managed to do so much.
But that’s not all, because the reigning world champion today went to pair with another sacred monster of MotoGP, becoming together with Casey Stoner the most successful rider in the history of Ducati in the premier class, reaching 23 successes, five of which in the first eight races of this year. Faced with these numbers, it’s almost strange to think that at the moment the Piedmontese rider is chasing Jorge Martin in the World Championship, albeit only 10 points behind.
If the last weekends have been practically perfect, like the two one-two finishes between Mugello and Assen, there have also been some serious mistakes like the one in Barcelona, where he threw away a Sprint already won on the last lap. For this reason, even after a majestic performance like that of a Dutch Grand Prix dominated since Friday morning, leaving only crumbs to his opponents, Pecco remains very cautious when he is given the label of “complete champion”.
“You know perfectly well that I am very critical of myself. Honestly, there is a lot of work to do on myself. There have been mistakes like the one in Barcelona, which was avoidable. There will always be something to learn, you don’t become a champion out of nowhere, there is always a lot of work behind it. At the moment we are on the right path, but we still have a lot to do”, he told Sky Sport MotoGP.
Today was a solitary ride practically from the start, because he took the lead from pole position and then set an infernal pace, which only Martin tried to sustain for just over half the race, before surrendering to his superiority . Mentally, therefore, it must not have been easy to maintain concentration.
“There’s little space for thoughts. More than anything else you have to try to control all the situations as much as possible: it was very windy, so you had to control the front tire very well, because there wasn’t enough heat to go with the hard , but it wasn’t even cold enough to go with the medium. We chose to go with the hard, but it was a bit of an extreme situation. Then Martin tried to come and get me twice and in those moments it was essential to be able to reopen the gap. Honestly, I just tried to do my best, as always.”
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
What is certain is that there is a special relationship between him and the Dutch track, on which he really seems to be doing another sport compared to the competition. The three victories, but also the double this weekend with every single lap in the lead, certify it, but he was asked what makes it so special for him.
“On Friday morning we went so fast with the medium tyre that not even those who put on the soft to set a time could beat us. This is something that rarely happens on other tracks: I always go fast on Friday morning, but usually the others overtake me. However, in general this track suits my riding style more than the bike. The bike always tends to be quite nervous and moves a lot. I have to say that the work we did to set it up and be competitive at high speed was fundamental. I also love corners when they are fast and need to be linked, so it suits my style a lot”.
The next round will be at the Sachsenring, where Martin scored a double last year, but above all where Marc Marquez holds every record, so it could be the right opportunity for him to go hunting for his first victory on the Ducati.
“The Sachsenring is a track where Martin and Marquez are stronger, even if last year on Sunday I was perhaps stronger than Jorge at the end of the race, but he was better and managed to win. We’ll see this year, but I think that the steps forward we are making this year will lead us to be competitive straight away and it will be a good race there too.”
Finally, looking ahead, he was asked if there are other tracks on which he expects to be able to perform at the level of Assen again: “I would like to be like this every weekend. I am aware that if we work well, we can always obtain these types of results There are certainly tracks for and against, but in the end the next ones are all quite good: the Sachsenring, then Silverstone, the Red Bull Ring, Misano, Aragon, they are all tracks on which I have always been very strong. But also in Australia and in Asia I achieved good results, there are no big cons.”
#MotoGP #Bagnaia #dont #champion #lot #work