Until this weekend, the Italian only accumulated one point in the first two rounds of the championship, a very poor baggage for someone who, on paper, is called to fight for the title given his status as current world runner-up. In the same way, it is striking that a fifth place boosted as much morale as that transmitted by the Ducati rider as soon as he finished the test in Termas de Río Hondo.
For someone who has not yet found the point of the 2022 prototype, the fact that the grand prix was reduced to two days for logistical reasons did not help either, in the same way that the state of the track, very dirty and full of potholes
Bagnaia, one of the finest riders on the grid, entrusted himself to the warm up to find that comfort that during the two free practice sessions prevented him from getting into the second heat of qualifying (Q2), and which later left him 14th. on the grid, although a penalty to Jack Miller allowed him to gain a place. In it, his technicians were guided by the set-up used in his last visit to Austin, a track as bumpy or more than that of Termas. If we take into account that the man from Turin started 13th and crossed the finish line fifth, it is clear that he took a step forward. Now it will be necessary to see if he was big enough to start cutting the points, in this case 33, that separate him from the leader, Aleix Espargaró.
“In the warm up we found a set-up that allowed me to rediscover the sensations I had last year with the front end. I already achieved it in part in Mandalika, but this time I was able to do everything I wanted with the bike. I was able to brake and entering the corner with conviction because the bike helped me”, said Bagnaia, who is now 14th in the general classification.
“I needed a race like this. It’s true that I started from far behind, but that was completely my fault and, in fact, I already apologized to the team for it. They worked a lot, and I got nervous [on Saturday]”, recognized the # 63.
On the idea of recovering the Austin 2021 script, the Ducati man even stated that, had he chosen to follow that line earlier, he would surely have had less work and would have finished later. At the same time, he was very insistent that anxiety played against him, something he will try to take note of.
“I want this weekend to serve as a lesson for me. I have regained my calm, but I would like to understand what happened so that it does not happen again. In any case, I am convinced that, after how this grand prix went, I will also be able to be competitive in Austin,” Bagnaia closed.
