Pecco Bagnaia gave Valentino Rossi his gift in advance. First in FP3 and then in qualifying, the student offered a precious tow to the teacher who appreciated the gesture. In his last race, the Doctor started from tenth place on the grid, while the Ducati rider was in second place in a pure Ducati leader.
“I hadn’t spoken to Vale, no strategy had been planned beforehand – Declared peak – I just saw him come out on the track with me and it was the least I could do for him after everything he gave me and the Academy drivers. “
You narrowly missed pole position and ended qualifying with a fall.
“Compared to last year here in Valencia everything is different for me, only one thing hasn’t changed: I kept falling in the second corner (laughs). I felt good in qualifying, but Martin earned this pole, he made an incredible last sector. I’m also very satisfied with FP4, I felt good with the used tires. “
You’ve always been in the front row since Assen, what’s the secret?
“I’ve been fast on the flying lap since my first MotoGP test, I like that. Since the Dutch GP I’ve gained more confidence on the bike, I’ve also worked a lot on the warm-up lap, but I don’t know what has changed since the first half of the year. The Ducati certainly has a lot of potential and it’s a bit easier for us to be quick on a single lap. “
Does the Desmosedici still have any shortcomings?
“This circuit has a design that is not easy for Ducati. We can make fewer differences in both acceleration and braking. There’s not a lot of grip and when braking it’s easy to lock up in the front and lose in the back, but even our rivals are struggling. As for me, I studied Miller’s data from last year and got a better understanding of how I had to drive here in Valencia. You have to be more careful with the gas, that’s a different style than other tracks. “
At Ducati, collaboration between riders seems fundamental.
“That’s right, that also applies to tire testing. For example, today I used the soft tail and Jack the hard one. But I think that tomorrow we will all use the medium, it is the best ”.
Does unity also create strength for the development of the bike?
“The most important thing is that all the riders on the works bike, Jack and I and the two from Pramac, have a lot of sensitivity. So when something new comes along, the feedback is always clear. “