Danilo Petrucci is a bit of a good guy in the paddock…
Always approachable and smiling, he often displays the attitude of a slightly awkward teddy bear lost among the top guns. But make no mistake, the fastest policeman in Italy knows how to twist the throttle, especially in the wet, when the precarious grip requires more a couple of things than sophisticated adjustments.
This is evidenced by his four podiums acquired last year at Mugello, Assen, Misano and Japan, all riding the same GP17 as his official colleagues.
The results are therefore generally positive since the Italian, although he concedes 13 points to his Mallorcan counterpart, is once again on the steps of Jorge Lorenzo, the man whose services Ducati acquired at a high price.
A priori, enough to make the Pramac pilot cringe, especially when he is questioned on the subject in the show Tutti Convocati of radio 24, but that would be forgetting the good-natured side of the individual... or even the philosophical side!
Danilo Petrucci : “I earn 50 times less than Lorenzo? For now, it's easy to say that money doesn't buy happiness. There are 23 or 24 of us very good pilots and we all really want to earn something that goes beyond the salary they pay us, but I admit that it gave me the taste to get ahead of those who earn much more than Me. I then think, 'You make more money, but tonight I'm going to be happier because I left you behind'.
We console ourselves as best we can...
This year, Danilo Petrucci will have the same bike as Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo at the start of the year. Then it will be based on its results, as stated Gigi Dall'Igna last Monday: « Danilo will have our bike and we will decide what type of development to do depending on the season. If he finds himself in a position to fight for victory, then we will give him everything he needs.”
It's sometimes thankless to be a satellite pilot...
