MotoGP, Bagnaia challenges Quartararo: “on paper he is faster, but I will fight to stay ahead”

The battle between Bagnaia and Quartararo is breathtaking, in which the two men answer each other blow by blow. With a 48-point advantage, Fabio might be happy to administer, but he doesn’t want to give up. On the other hand, Pecco wants to do everything to put pressure on his opponent. Even today, in Austin, the protagonists were both. For the first time, Marquez was beaten in qualifying in Texas and Bagnaia is the first Italian driver to sign 3 consecutive poles since Valentino.

“This morning I didn’t think it was possible, but after FP4 I did – he explained – During this session I had followed Miller and figured out how to interpret T1, I started letting the bike follow the dips, returning to the Misano setup, and the feel improved. I took some risks, but when on my best lap I saw that I was 2 tenths ahead after the first sector, I just thought about pushing hard â€.

While Pecco had started the weekend in trouble, Quartararo had been quick from the start, although he was not sure he had a good qualifying. “I didn’t expect the front row or even Bagnaia to do this time – he admitted – In the first outing I had a few problems, but in the second I decided to attack, even though I kept a bit of margin at turn 10 “.

The Ducati rider has won the battle, but the war will be tomorrow and the adversaries will be numerous.

“If I watch the rhythm of Quartararo, Marquez and Miller, it’s better than mine – he said – But now my feeling with the bike is better, I’m sure Marc will try to get out of it and the key will be to be consistent, because with these bumps the bike always behaves differently. In any case, I want to fight to stay ahead â€.

After all, Bagnaia has nothing to lose given the gap, while an error would penalize Fabio, who has nevertheless learned to keep his cool.

“I can’t say I feel the pressure – said the Yamaha rider – From Aragon, Pecco did a perfect job, still on pole and two wins, but I also feel good in Austin. In Misano I was a little more nervous than usual, it’s normal as I approach the final finish line, but as soon as the race started I forgot everything. “

Everything is therefore ready for a new challenge on a track that will test body and soul and in which it will be very difficult to overtake with all these bumps, as each rider has said.

The Italian Ducati rider will go on the attack and has already received compliments from his teacher Valentino, who said he has not seen anyone drive the Ducati like Pecco in a long time.

“When I started in MotoGP I always crashed, I tried to push but my riding style didn’t suit the Ducati – recalled Pecco – In the first test I was quick only because no one had done a flying lap, but from the first race in Qatar the problems started. Also last year, I only did 2 or 3 good races, then I changed my mind. On the one hand I adapted my style to the Ducati to be able to brake hard, on the other hand the bike allowed me to have more speed in the corners. “

It worked and he is now ready for another challenge with Quartararo.