Francesco Bagnaia with confidence towards the first MotoGP race with Ducati Team colours. “I expect a lot from myself. Goal? Top 5, then we’ll see.”
We are on the eve of the first MotoGP free practice with the Ducati Team colours. Francesco Bagnaia is ready to compete in his first vintage with the official colours of the Borgo Panigale house. ‘Pecco‘ has never hidden the emotion of this passage, combined with the responsibility and pressure that all this entails. But he feels much better prepared than last season, the feeling with the red is certainly good, but he does not risk predictions of any kind. What is certain, however, is that he will give his best to start immediately in the best way.
“A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH JACK”
“I expect a lot from myself,” underlined the former Moto2 world champion, in his third season in the premier class. “I worked hard over the winter to be competitive. The tests with the Panigale, although not the same bike, helped me take a step in the right direction.” His box mate will still be Jack Miller, already a colleague in Pramac. “I have a great relationship with Jack. We are working towards the same goal and we will certainly help each other in the future.” What would be a good result for him? “The top 5, to say more would be too much at the moment. I want to have fun and also show in the race that we have a good pace as in the tests.”
What impressed everyone in the official tests was the top speed shown by the reds. “Every time our bike is fast on the straight” admitted Bagnaia, underlining however that “other bikes are too. Sometimes I got in the slipstream, many others have improved and it’s not easy to overtake.” But overall, “I feel better than last year, I’m about 8 tenths quicker and the feeling isn’t bad. It can be a good season.” A note is not missing. “This is a positive circuit for us, but we will see later how we behave on other tracks to see if we have really improved.”
“WE CAN BE PART OF THE GAME”
Do you feel pressure? “I have people around me who help me manage it” he remarked. “At the moment, however, not much.” He then takes stock of his physical level after the leg injury in 2020. “It was a good blow. Now it is returning to 100% and I have started running again, a very positive aspect that also helps me to be more lucid mentally. In general, I feel much better prepared.” How do you see 2021 for this? “At the moment I don’t feel like one of the riders to beat, given last year’s races,” said ‘Pecco’. “But the pace shown in the tests was excellent and the race simulation was very fast. We can be part of the game.”