The delay of one of the planes to Termas de Rio Hondo has prevented many teams from having the necessary material to start the Argentine Grand Prix. This situation forced MotoGP to cancel the usual program on Friday, postponing the start of the action on the track to Saturday.
There is still no absolute certainty that it will be possible to go out on the track, as the material continues in Mombasa (Africa), waiting for spare parts to repair one of the four engines.
Among the most impatient teams is Ducati. Not only is the official team one of those that is still waiting for the material, but the runner-up in the world, Pecco Bagnaia, is one of those who do not even want to think about not racing, given that his season has not started well.
“I sincerely hope that we can run, because one less race would make even more of a difference. However, at the moment, it is the biggest unknown,” Bagnaia said Thursday at Termas de Rio Hondo.
“It will be important to start well right away and stay very focused. Fortunately, this did not happen on a track like Austin, which requires a lot of work. But on a track that is quite similar to Indonesia in set-up and layout, we are not calm, because there is work. to do”.
Pecco Bagnaia’s plan will be to adapt the bike to the track, which at the moment “is very dirty”.
“In these conditions it is always better not to try too many things, but to leave the bike as it is. I am quite sure that it will not be an easy weekend for anyone. We just have to try to adapt as soon as possible, because we have little time to do it,” he added.
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
After Mandalika’s controversy related to the new Michelin casing, Pecco assured that he is happy “that this weekend we will have the standard casing again, even if it is a little different”.
“I think I can be competitive. But first we’ll have to find out if we can compete or not…” he said.
Inevitably, Pecco Bagnaia brought up his Sunday in Indonesia, a wet race that only allowed the Italian to finish 15th.
“It was my mistake, because I didn’t put enough energy in the front and I lost some tire support. I lost grip,” he recalled.
However, after a bitter Sunday, staying home for a few days allowed Bagnaia to recharge her batteries:
“I enjoyed it. I went to the gym and let off steam a lot with my workouts. I spent a lot of time with my girlfriend and my dog. I needed serenity and all the people who love me have been good at giving it to me, so it’s worked out really well for me.”
Finally, he also spoke about the new chicane that was built at the Red Bull Ring to slow down the section that precedes turn 3, where the terrible accident between Franco Morbidelli and Johann Zarco occurred two years ago.
“The previous situation on the circuit was quite dangerous. It looks like a fairly slow chicane, but it will allow us to reach a safer speed,” settled the Italian.
