Fabio Quartararo wasn’t sure whether he could become world champion at Misano, given the difficulties in qualifying and above all the dominance of Ducati and Bagnaia until shortly before the checkered flag. But then the falls of Jack Miller and Pecco paved the way for his first high-profile title, which, given the talent of the Frenchman, is probably the first of many.
When he fell, Bagnaia dominated over Marquez and According to our Carletto Pernat, the reason for his crash and that of his team-mate lies in Ducati’s choice of tires, which opted for the hard front for both riders. A solution that the others did not choose and which was perhaps not the best, in the hope of being able to keep the discussion about the World Cup open until after Valencia. Misano was also the day of Bastianini’s comeback podium and Valentino Rossi’s farewell to Italy as a MotoGP rider.
As always, our Pernat commented on what was happening on the route for us in front of a nice bottle of Prosecco DOC, here is an excerpt from his analysis.
“There is bad and good news from Misano. The bad news is that the World Cup is over for us Italian athletes because Fabio Quartararo has become the new world champion. A well-deserved title that he could easily have won in Portugal. It leaves a bitter taste in the mouth that Ducati has chosen two hard front tires, the only ones in the group of riders.
It was a certain strategy that turned out to be wrong. Both Miller and Bagnaia crashed. The decisions are so called because you only know afterwards whether they are right or wrong. Bagnaia had ridden a perfect race but that choice turned out to be a loser. It’s a shame, the World Cup could still have ended after that. However, Quartararo turned out to be the strongest of them all and also showed that he was no longer under pressure.
Then came the return of Marquez, which will worry the others. I think he will be the man to beat in 2022, he is the phenomenon. The others have grown, but I think Marc surprised us this year. He may not be the Marquez of always again, but at least he is a victorious Marquez. Great third place for Bastianini, who started 18th and finished third. Something not easy in the current MotoGP without forgetting that he has Zarco’s motorcycle from last season in the pits, a 2019 Ducati. “