Four of the Bologna-based prototypes led the first day of testing at the San Marino Grand Prix, where the current world champion finished fifth, even though he dominated much of the practice.
In any case, the tremendous inertia carried by Pecco Bagnaia, winner of the last three races and which, thanks to this, has allowed him to cut the Devil a total of 47 points in these three events, to 44 behind Fabio Quartararo.
Ducati, with eight Desmosedici on the grid and most of them competitive, has created a common front with the aim of offering Bagnaia the option of re-engaging in the fight for a title that seemed impossible a month ago.
Given the poor results of the rest of the Yamaha riders, the Frenchman stands before the most decisive section of the course completely alone. Precisely for this reason, the boy from Nice looks for allies where it is hard to see them. So much so that the leader of the table trusts that Márquez will be competitive as soon as possible, so that he can question that dominance that Ducati has exhibited in recent days.
“I hope that Marc comes back and is capable of ruining Ducati’s plans,” said Quartararo this Friday, after finishing three tenths behind Enea Bastianini, the fastest of the day.
Asked about the penalty of three positions on the grid that Bagnaia will have to face, the #20 did not beat around the bush either, and admitted that anything that stops the Italian is worth it, although he also had a sense of humor: “We joked about the penalty to Pecco, and we said that if I’m the one who does it, I get three years in prison”, before adding that “we have to take advantage of everything, including Pecco’s sanction”, added the Frenchman, much more satisfied with his pace on long lap runs, than on a lopsided spin: “But we know why, and we know how to correct it.”
