English
Italiano
It was a classic Friday at Bagnaia, with no fireworks but steady improvement. Back in the standings for most of the second practice session (and practically the only one, too, considering the track conditions in the morning) and then 8th, when it was enough to get straight into Q2. Pecco had said in Qatar that he likes to work in silence.
"I prefer to talk with results - he reiterated the concept in Portimao - I know my potential, what I can do, but if I said, after an 18th place in practice, that I could win on Sunday, people would take me for a fool. So sometimes it is better to work quietly to prepare myself for the goal. To be in front of everyone on Friday would be better, it would mean to be already okay, but it's never an obsession, I prefer to figure everything out as best I can. Sometimes it happened, like at Mugello last year, but it doesn't matter too much to me."
So did everything go according to plan today?
"Friday is a work day, unfortunately this morning we threw away the session because you couldn't try anything because of the track conditions. We went a little slow and took a direction that wasn't right, but we already know where to go tomorrow. Not having tested on this track, we realized today that this bike needs something different than last year's bike, but we already know what. Tomorrow will be a different story and I'm happy to be in Q2 already."
Was it acceptable to have the track in those conditions in the morning?
"In the past there have been even worse conditions ... we can take it (smiles)."
Compared to the GP23, is the GP24 easier to set-up?
"It is easier to find the solution. This afternoon's was the first real practice session and we already know where to go, I feel like it has sped up this process. Maybe I'll start tomorrow and it won't, but for now it's easy to figure out what the new bike needs."
How did you find the new Desmosedici on this track?
"The GP23 had less load on the front and it worked well on this track, except for the last corner. Last year I was losing 2 1/2 tenths there, while today I was gaining them, although in other parts of the circuit I am not as effective. It's always a matter of finding the right balance."
Are the values in the field clear?
"We will definitely find out better tomorrow. In my opinion, the KTM is very fit, this has never been their track, and today the two factory riders were in front. I think they will be competitive, as will the other Ducatis."
Automatic Translation by DeepL
