After a mixed start to the season, Francis Bagnaia is coming back like a cannonball on the championship leader fabio quartararo while shocking the statistics: 10 Grands Prix won out of the last 20 and a series of four consecutive victories which only asks to continue on a circuit where he won last year.
Despite his usual reserve, the top Ducati rider can only appreciate this extremely positive trend which currently places him 30 points behind the Frenchman. He spoke about it during the press conference ahead of the Aragón Grand Prix.
Francis Bagnaia : " For sure, for me this moment is pretty awesome, because I feel incredible with my bike and also with the work we are doing in the box. Because every time we start the weekend, maybe it's not in the best possible way, apart from Assen, which was amazing from the start, then Silverstone and Austria, we had a bit hurt, but we found a way to prepare for the race. We are working so well, considering that the beginning of the year was not the best because I was struggling a lot to find a good setup, a good feeling with the new bike. We started in Jerez finding a very good pace, but I made too many mistakes. Le Mans and Sachsenring were a big problem for me, I lost a lot of confidence and a lot of points, but I think we did a very good job. Also, during the summer break, with my coach and with my team, we found the mistakes and where the problem was, and I think we learned a big lesson and maybe also from that we found the best consistency . »
However, the one we nickname Pecco does not get a big head and does not even feel any particular pressure despite his victory in 2021 in Aragón and his four consecutive victories.
« I also think in Austria people said I had to win because I was with Ducati; in Misano, because it was my home Grand Prix. So it doesn't mean much to me. I just want to try to work well like we did in the last races, and try to be in the lead, because I think a lot of drivers this year can fight for the victory. The biggest key will be to be consistent like we have been in the last few races. »
His first victory, acquired in 2021 in Aragón against Marc Márquez, blatantly seems to have been the trigger that allowed Francesco Bagnaia to have confidence in himself.
« It came after a difficult period because I was always competitive with the pace to win races, but every time something happened. So the race here last year with Marc was, for sure, something that helped me understand that I was capable of winning races. I didn't think that anything would change after this victory, that the world was still the same, but ultimately, if we look at the results, it gave me the motivation and the power to win races. So for sure, this race helped me be more competitive. »
