Enea Bastianini spared no effort in this Grand Prix of the Americas which he entered from sixteenth place on the starting grid. On the grueling Austin track, in a race with an electric atmosphere, he overcame the bumps on the track and the physically exhausting conditions to move up to sixth place. A hell of a performance following that of the podium at Misano and still on a Ducati GP19. He recounts his epic while not failing to enjoy the duel between Miller and Mir from which he pulled the chestnuts out of the fire. He also has a word on the Moto3 events which shook the paddock…
Enea Bastianini achieved a new feat in MotoGP by showing himself as a solid candidate for the top 6. On a dreaded Austin route, the reigning Moto2 World Champion avoided the traps and showed his strength by moving up from his sixteenth starting row to the gates of the top 5: “ I'm very happy with the race because we were below our value in qualifying on Saturday. I think we deserved more. But we got the strategy a little wrong. On the day of the race, on the other hand, we immediately took the right path, and in the morning I had a very good feeling, even if I only did two laps so as not to get tired. ", said Enea Bastianini.
« From 16th place on the grid, it certainly wasn't the easiest race of my life ", added Esponsorama rider Avintia, who rides a Ducati Desmosedici GP19. “ Ultimately, the bike allowed him to finish sixth. We came back well and did a great job. Maybe we deserved a little more, but that's okay ».
The Italian of 23 years regained two places on the final lap when Jack Miller and Joan Mir were engrained. “ Let's put it this way: I was waiting for them to make a mistake because I saw they were bickering. I waited for the right moment to attack and finally got through turn 15. Of course Joan tried to recover, at turn 19 he made an attempt, but at turn 20 I braked very late and stayed behind him ».
Bastianini: “ with what's happening this year we should be a little more careful«
« To be honest, I thought there might still be a ninth or tenth place, but not a sixth » he admitted, specifying: “ I'm a rookie, but now I have more experience: I know what to work on at the weekend, I understood the tires and I also changed my working method. I am more confident in each race and I'm sure I can be even faster in the remaining races. Each Grand Prix is a story in itself, we will see. This is a good sign, we are laying the foundations for next year ».
He also gives his feelings about the violent clash which took place during the Moto3 race with the sanction taken against Deniz Oncu which followed: “ I would have suspended him for the entire championship… For me he was really aggressive, just like his style: he goes slightly over the limit in all races ».
He finishes : " with what's happening this year, we should be a little more careful. It was not good to have a five-lap race on a track that is not the simplest. These are maneuvers to avoid, but I remember well that the youngest are more unconscious ».
MotoGP Austin J3: ranking
Credit classification motogp.com
