Cheste.- All the riders of the VR46 Academy used this Sunday at the Valencia Grand Prix a helmet inspired by one of the decorations used by Valentino Rossi in the years in which he was proclaimed world champion.
Pecco Bagnaia, his most outstanding student and, in a way, who picks up the witness of the #46 in the highest category, chose the 2004 one, the year in which Valentino, after leaving Honda , became champion with Yamaha for the first time.
“The most important thing was to celebrate Valentino’s farewell as best as possible and with the helmet I was wearing I wanted to win. In 2004, when he made his debut with Yamaha, it was not easy for him and that for me is the most difficult story for him and it is the way he wanted to celebrate his last race. I wanted to celebrate the victory with him on the lap of honour, there were a lot of emotions”, explained Pecco at the end of the race.
“When I started thinking about what I could do to honor Vale, to surprise him, I thought about it a lot, I wanted to make a special helmet, I thought about its history and its past helmets, and the 2004 one was one of my favorites, I wanted to do it and at I finally decided to use it. Vale is a friend and an older brother, he has helped us a lot and everything he has done and is doing for us is great. For me it is a great day to have been able to offer him this victory with his helmet”, added the Italian.
For the world runner-up, racing with the Valentino helmet and having to do it well did not mean any extra pressure.
“Honestly no, it was positive pressure, I wasn’t playing anything, so I just did my career, did what I was always doing in the last few weekends and I’m happy to have won with this helmet.”
Bagnaia achieved his fourth victory of the season in a race that did not start very well, but which he ended up clearly dominating.
“I don’t know why in the last two races I have started so badly. Today I came fourth after the first corner. I don’t know why it’s so hard for me, maybe I have to work more on the starts. But I knew that at the pace level it was very competitive, I was able to overtake Miller, who made a small mistake in the last corner, which, like turn 2, was very complicated today, “he said.
“Following Jorge (Martín) I saw that my pace was a little better and when I noticed that Joan Mir reduced the difference with me I decided to pass Jorge and push hard to get the victory. I am very happy because in a circuit where we have never gone well in the past, we have managed to take a big step. It means a lot to me to win here.”
Bagnaia has had a sensational second half of the season, with four wins and six pole positions, but was unable to catch up with champion Fabio Quartararo. Looking ahead to next year, however, the Ducati rider is expected in the fight for the title.
“I hope that expectations do change for next year. Now we know that we can win, the bike is similar to last year. What has changed the most is that a bike that used to have trouble turning now turns well and is very competitive. I think that all the riders who use the Ducati are very good and we make a great team”.
Bagnaia opened a hat trick for Ducati, ahead of Miller, third, and the debutant Martín, who completed a fantastic race.
“ Rookie ? Jorge has done a great job, much more than that. Starting with a podium in the second race of the year and a victory in Austria after an injury, he had a great season, you have to feel satisfied, today he had a great race. Our bike is not the easiest for a rookie and he has learned very quickly. It took me much longer to learn, for me this is the first year that I feel so good and he has achieved it in his first year. Bastianini and Marini have also done a great job as rookies, they have worked very well and all the Ducati riders are very fast and competitive”, he granted.
(Before reading on, click on the link or on the image to see all the photos of Pecco Bagnaia at the 2021 MotoGP Valencia GP)
Next Thursday, in the tests, Ducati will put the 2022 bike on the track. It is difficult to think that it can be better and that any change is not to worsen what works perfectly.
“I hope that next year’s bike will be even better than this one, which is already perfect at the moment, and this is something that Ducati has to think about, to improve from where we are. I think maybe he doesn’t have to change many things, but I’m sure that if Gigi (Dall’Igna) decides to make a change it will be for the better, so I’m not afraid of the new bike we’re going to test on Thursday. I fully trust the in-house engineers”.
Mir, who came second in the race and in the end finished fourth, said he was shocked by the superiority of the Ducati, who saw them as unattainable.
“I was surprised to have been so fast, the truth is that with respect to the first race last year it was different, that one was in mixed conditions, they cannot be compared, it has to be compared with the second, in which the pace was more or less the same. Conditions today were better. I think Jack’s pace this year was similar to race two last year. We have been able to manage the gas, we had problems with the consumption of rubber on the left flank and I wanted to manage it to maintain consistency. We have achieved it, in the second part of the season, we have improved a lot in that aspect”, settled the boy from Torino.
