The 2017 world champion and vice-champion, Franco Morbidelli and Tom Lüthi, left for MotoGP, the way now seems clear for those who shone alongside them throughout last season: Miguel Oliveira, Álex Márquez, Francesco Bagnaia , but also Mattia Pasini and Brad Binder.
Before the championship resumes, we invite you to learn a little more about these drivers by showing you their journey. (Portraits in five parts)
Mattia Pasini
If Oliveira, Márquez and Bagnaia seem to be the favorites for the title this year, we will also have to count on Mattia Pasini, the outsider from 2017, who has re-revealed himself to the public and will be one to watch this year.
Born in Rimini on August 13, 1985, Mattia Pasini grew up in the cradle of Italian motorcycling, in the heart of Emilia-Romagna. In addition, his father, a former Italian champion, and his uncle created the Pasini Mini Project in 1990 in order to train young riders on mini motorcycles that they manufactured. Growing up in such a family could only encourage him to become a pilot himself, and this is how he took his first steps on two wheels at just four years old.
He raced part of his childhood in the mini motorcycle championships, in which he excelled and won the title of Italian champion at the age of eleven. Two years later, however, his destiny almost changed. A fan of motocross that he practices in training, he has a bad fall and seriously injures his femur, his collarbone and especially his right arm, the nerves of which are partially torn, causing him to lose a large part of his mobility. Condemned by doctors to forget his dream of becoming a pilot, he took three years to get back in the saddle, determined to prove them wrong.
Despite his weakened arm, he returned to racing at the highest level, finishing third in the 125cc European Championship in 2003, and despite his lack of experience and the delay accumulated in three years, he obtained a handlebar in the 125cc World Cup and debuted on a Aprilia in 2004. He won his first Grand Prix in China the following year, and had three excellent seasons, winning eight races and reaching the podium nine other times.
He arrived in 250cc in 2008 and won the first race directly, still on an Aprilia. He finished ninth in the championship in his first season in the intermediate category, with three other podiums to his name.
He continued his momentum in 2009 and made an impression at Mugello where he won the race in pouring rain after an epic duel with Marco Simoncelli. He reached the podium four more times and finished fifth overall.
Unfortunately the change from 250cc to Moto2 did not work for Pasini who had five very difficult years during which he constantly changed teams and bikes, encountered a lot of bad luck, and was no longer able to return to the front. In 2012 he moved up to MotoGP but was finally fired before the end of the season.
At the end of 2014, disappointed and worn out by his complicated years, he decided to no longer race in the World Cup, unless he found a team that would really believe in him and provide him with a good bike. He spent the 2015 season recharging his batteries at home by training in motocross and making two wild cards at Mugello and Misano.
His decision paid off since in 2016 the Italian team Italtrans agreed to trust him. Pasini is gradually regaining his bearings in the category and achieves six top ten finishes, including two very good fourth places.
He finally returned to his best level in 2017 and won the Mugello Grand Prix, eight years after his last victory, on the same track, with incredible panache. He finished sixth in the championship with two other podiums on the clock.
Having returned to the top after complicated years, Mattia Pasini has the experience and unfailing motivation to win this year. It will be one to follow very closely…
Previously: portraits of Miguel Oliveira, Alex Marquez et Francesco Bagnaia.
To be continued: the portrait of the last contender for the Moto2 title, Brad Binder.
