Once again, Francesco Bagnaia was at the forefront throughout the weekend and put in a solid race, which allowed him to maintain the lead in the Championship. Luca Marini, for his part, had less luck in the race.
First in FP1, fifth in FP2 then tenth in FP3, Francis Bagnaia announced the color from the free practice sessions. Then qualifying in third position, all the lights were on for him to achieve a good result in the race.
After a good start, he remained in third position and defended this place against the attacks of Xavi Virginie until the end, thus offering himself his third podium of the season after his two victories in Qatar and Texas.
However, the Grand Prix was not generally easy for “Pecco”: “The weekend was not easy, so finishing with a third place is very important for the Championship. The track conditions were complicated, we knew we would have more difficulty with the high temperatures and the wind. It was easy to make a mistake because the tire wear was not even. »
As leader of the Championship, the goal is to score big points in each race, and know how to settle for the last step of the podium if it is not possible to do more: “In the first laps I was able to set my pace, although I lost time with Binder. I tried to be fast from the first laps. Baldassarri certainly had something more, he was cleaner in his trajectories, so I thought about taking as many points as possible by going for a good result. »
For his teammate Luca Marini, on the other hand, the weekend was a little more complicated. Twelfth in the combined free practice times, he then qualified in the same place, before taking a step forward during the Warm Up on Sunday morning: “Between qualifying and the Warm Up, we found a good balance on the bike to be able to stay with the strong men. »
Unfortunately the Italian did not have time to take advantage of this progress due to a fall in the first lap: “It’s not the race we expected. Unfortunately, a few corners after the start, Lowes, who was in front of me, braked earlier than expected. I was forced to change trajectory and I didn't see Navarro who was just behind. I'm sorry for involving him in the accident, but there was nothing I could do. »
