On the podium in the first race of the season, the Italtrans driver has everything to finish among the best at the end of the year but does not intend to rush.
Discreet during the pre-season tests but at the forefront nonetheless, Enea Bastianini made his comeback on the podium in Qatar after qualifying on the front row. A result “which means a lot” according to him, and which had not happened since the Czech Republic last year (his first podium in the category).
“From the first test the level was high but since the Jerez test I was among the top places, I didn't have too much trouble”, he explained during an interview with GPOne. “ I knew I was competitive, even if I wasn't sure I was competitive enough to make the podium. We had a small problem but we haven't figured out what happened yet. I wasn't very fast in a straight line and everyone was overtaking me on the slipstream while I couldn't do it. »
“During the tests I tried to work on [the first part of the race], and also to progress in qualifying because I often started far away”, he continued. “I tried to immediately have a good rhythm as soon as I entered the track and in the end I managed to do it in the race. »
Training which paid off and which followed a complicated end to the 2019 season. However, it had started under the best auspices, the Italian adapting very quickly to his new category. But an injury put an end to his hopes for the title of best rookie of the year, which only escaped him by 11 points in favor of Fabio Di Giannantonio:
“I managed to fight with the leaders, I got on the podium in Brno and staying at home for a month was difficult, I was sad. When I came back I couldn't attack with my foot on the pedal and that compromised the entire end of the championship. I could only be fast for two or three laps and then the pain would come. [The problem] had also been mental. In Motegi I was riding well but had difficulty again. It had been a combination of things, but I started from scratch over the winter. I trained a lot in cross country with a whole group of riders. »
A strong Moto3 rider from 2015 to 2018, Bastianini has played for the title several times and does not want to go as fast as in the smaller category. This time, he intends to take his time: “It's not my goal at the moment, even if I have everything to achieve it. I'm in an excellent team and I feel in good shape. Obviously, I would like to win and I will try, but for now I want to have fun and think one race after the other. We will then see at the end of the year what will happen. »
