Giacomo Agostini may have already celebrated his 80th birthday , but the Italian remains a living legend of motorcycling and continues to enjoy the races as a spectator with excitement. And although the eight-time 500cc world champion competed in a much more dangerous time, winning the fearsome TT on the Isle of Man, he continues to be amazed at the risks taken by Marc Márquez, who is recovering from his fourth operation in his right arm, the one that was broken two years ago, but he is looking forward to coming back in a better level of form.
For Agostini, that mentality would have been inconceivable in the last century: “I feel that now he is out of action, unfortunately, he has fallen a lot. One day I told him that in my time I would have died five times.”
“But he is like that, he gives 100%,” he acknowledged in Corriere dello Sport . “I hope he goes back to being who he was, Marc [Márquez] is the rider who makes you get up from the saddle, and I like him, he and Fabio [Quartararo] are the ones who look for a way to greet me before the start of each grand prix” .
Although he appreciates Marquez and Quartararo , the Italian is less supportive of the current generation of bikes, and agrees with Dorna ‘s view that limits should be set for safety. As a purist of motorcycling, he would like to give more prominence to the pilot, reducing the electronic assistance, such as traction control or anti-wheelie.
“I don’t like these machines in MotoGP,” he explained to GPOne . “I would take some of the power away, because that’s not what makes the show, it just makes it more dangerous, not to mention it takes the fun out of piloting it with the wrist, instead of relying on electronic assistance.” .
“With less horsepower, the accidents would be less dangerous, and there would be more spectacle. The fights in Moto2 and Moto3 are also good, regardless of the power, because the riders put on a show,” acknowledged the Brescia rider.
The race for development has given rise to greater competition, but the most successful in history considers that technology has now gained too much prominence. The Italian believes that it is necessary to find the balance to shine as a category, despite the fact that it has generated very close competition, to the point of worrying other motorcycling greats, such as Jonathan Rea .
Agostini, like the Briton, thinks that a limit has been reached, and prefers that the pilots be those who distinguish themselves by their ability to make a difference: “With this technology, a small mistake is enough for someone to go from winning in just one chance to do it nine times in a row.
“You like to see multiple winners, but you want the hero to do things that others can’t, like Cassius Clay, Eddie Merckx, Maradona, Valentino Rossi, Rafa Nadal, etc,” he continued. “I don’t think anyone who wins a lot causes fatigue in the fans, those who win attract the public and make them fall in love, think about the affection that people had for Rossi until his last years, when he didn’t win”.
“Motorcycling needs great characters, it’s not fair [for a manufacturer] that invests a lot to have the best rider lose a race because a tire doesn’t work or because of an electronic problem,” he explained. “You have to eliminate the electronics and the power, it’s not the 280 horsepower that makes the show, before there was 130.”
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