2023 was a truly triumphal year for Ducati in MotoGP. Pecco Bagnaia confirmed himself as world champion for the second consecutive time, but the Borgo Panigale manufacturer dominated far and wide, achieving an impressive 17 victories in the long races and the same number in the Sprints. Results that allowed her to monopolize the world podium with Jorge Martin second and in contention for the title until Valencia and Marco Bezzecchi third.
Performances that led to the introduction of a new concession system to help manufacturers in difficulty such as Honda and Yamaha. But which ended up penalizing the Red team also against Aprilia and KTM. Gigi Dall’Igna spoke about this and much more before the start of the collective tests in Valencia, which mark another milestone for Ducati, given that there will be the debut on the Desmosedici GP of an eight-time world champion like Marc Marquez, who preferred a private Red from Gresini Racing to the possibility of continuing the adventure with the official Honda.
“It’s been an incredible season, the numbers are incredible, so we’re very proud of the work we’ve done. I want to say thanks to the riders, who were fantastic, but also to all the Ducati Corse guys. We started very well right from the start. ‘beginning, but we managed to further evolve the bike in different areas,” said Dall’Igna.
“It was also a difficult season, because we had two ‘brothers’ fighting for the title and we had to give both of them the same chance of winning the World Championship, trying to remain equidistant from each other. Clearly for our sponsors it was better than Pecco won in the end, but we had to be sporting and give both of us the same chances. And we did it”, he added.
The new concession system was announced yesterday, what is your opinion?
“I agree with the concessions, I believe they are an important thing especially for the manufacturers who are most in difficulty. I believe it is right to give advantages to the Japanese, because if the championship becomes more beautiful it will be better for everyone. What doesn’t I agree is to also give concessions to KTM and Aprilia, manufacturers who have won races this year or who have in any case been constantly fighting to win races. It will change for us too, because we will have fewer tires for development and this that’s what worries me. In the medium term, therefore not at the beginning of the season, it could penalize us.”
Are you afraid that if your performances continue to be so dominant they could even end up neutering you in terms of performance as happened in Superbike?
“I don’t think this is the objective of the organizers of the World Championship and the Federation. In Superbike we start with a production bike and it is clear that this is done on purpose to highlight how high-performance they are. But it is clear that there may be differences between one manufacturer and another. Here, however, the bikes are all designed according to the same rules, so I already understand it little in Superbike, but in MotoGP it would truly be something against nature.”
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Is it true that Ducati didn’t want Marc Marquez?
“Ducati’s position was that they didn’t want Marquez, but I’m certainly curious to hear the comments he’ll give me, because he’s one of the most important riders in the history of motorcycling, so it’s an honor that he wants to race with our bike. Definitely Marc he is a cumbersome rider, so we will have to be good at managing the situation between all the teams and people who work at Ducati, because I believe that one of our strengths is precisely the harmony that exists within our teams. What really pleases me is that a rider like him strongly wanted our bike and made sacrifices to have it.”
Is it a problem that he only has one year on his contract?
“I think it’s something reasonable, because the riders of the satellite teams usually don’t have very long contracts. It’s part of the game. We will work hard to try to give the best possible to all the riders who have the Ducati logo on the tank “.
Do you think the Desmosedici GP is suitable for Marc’s riding style?
“Practically all the riders who have ridden on it have won with our bike, so I imagine so and I imagine that we will be able to give him advice on how to adapt the bike to his style”.
What bike will Marc start working with?
“Like all the teams that will use the GP23, it will start with the bike with which Zarco finished the season. On the bikes of Bagnaia, Martin and Bastianini we had introduced some further evolutions, which however gave us some reliability and performance problems, therefore we believe these are things that would not be easy for private teams to use.”
Do you think Marc will help you continue to grow the Desmosedici GP or will you mainly follow the instructions of the official riders?
“I listen to all riders in the same way. I have never followed a single rider and I consider it wrong. What is important is to improve the bike. If there is a problem, even if the official rider doesn’t tell me, if I resolve he can be faster too. I have always listened to all the riders and will continue to do so”
What changes for Bagnaia with Marquez’s arrival in the Ducati orbit?
“I don’t think much changes. He is a two-time world champion and must do everything to confirm himself for the third time. There aren’t many riders who have managed to win two years in a row, so he is one of the most important in the MotoGP Right now”.
Photo by: German Garcia
Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing
What did the official riders ask for 2024?
“What the riders always ask for: more performance, more speed, that you curve more (laughs). Let’s say that in the last part of the season we had some episodes of vibration that we hadn’t had on our bike for a while, so it will be certainly one of the issues we will address. We will pay attention to it.”
What is your rating of Michelin’s quality control? Do you think it can influence the championship?
“It’s not easy to make tires that are all the same, just as it’s not easy to make engines that are all the same. I have the same problem, because even if they are on paper there’s always someone who has a few more horsepower, one that breaks or one that goes a little less. These things are part of the races and the driver must accept them. It’s clear that if they happen at the key moment of the season they hurt more. But you don’t win or lose a championship for It’s the fault of a tyre. You win and lose it above all due to the mistakes that were made during the season. And if one wants to improve, those are the ones you have to concentrate on.”
The other evening Martin said: “If what I did this year wasn’t enough to put me in Red, it will never be enough.” Do you think it was just the frustration of the moment or that he might think about changing in the future?
“Jorge had an incredible championship this year and he certainly deserved to be in the official team. Unfortunately there are only two bikes in the official team and the contracts must be respected. At the end of the year the contracts will expire and then we will evaluate what the best options for Ducati will be We have done our duty, because we have given him the opportunity to fight for the championship until the end. And next year he will start on equal terms again.”
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