Enea Bastianini has been reunited with pole after four years of drought. The Italian rider has recorded the best time in Q2 at the Austrian GP, beating the two official Ducati.
“I am very satisfied to have achieved pole position after four years”, declared the former Moto2 world champion in the press conference after qualifying.
Bastianini does not hide that making the best time was something “unexpected”. And it is that the Gresini driver finished sixth in the combined classification of free practice, almost half a second from the fastest.
However, Enea improved his times in FP4, rising to first position. “We have done a great job in FP4, and we have taken another step forward.”
But, although he showed a very competitive pace, Bastianini prefers to be cautious, calling tomorrow’s race “tough”. “All Ducatis are competitive and we all want to win,” he explains. “Also, Quartararo has a very good pace. And there is also the new chicane…”.
Fortunately, leading a MotoGP Grand Prix does not come as a surprise. The ‘Beast’ has already accumulated three victories so far this season, and there were times when he was outlined as a contender for the title. But the Italian is not confident: “This race is going to be very different from the one in Qatar.”
“Here it’s difficult to get away from the start. In my case, I’ll have to manage the first part of the race better so as not to lose too many positions. parts from behind you want to come back fast”.
Returning to the podium would be a morale boost for him, who did not enter the top ten from Le Mans to Silverstone. “In the last two or three races before the summer break I wasn’t going fast. I was a bit tired and nervous, because I had made too many mistakes.
And it is that, in addition to being in the upper part of the general classification, Bastianini fights with Jorge MartÃn to get the second official Ducati for 2023. “I had to do a mental reset to be able to return more prepared in this second half of the season” , recognize.
“The 2021 and 2022 bikes are very similar, and for the rest of the season we will try to do the best we can. We will go race by race, and not look at the general,” concluded the poleman .
Do you want to read our news before anyone else and for free? Follow us here on our Telegram channel and you won’t miss a thing. All the information, at your fingertips!
