At Ducati, we can't believe that we are still talking about team instructions in a season where Pecco Bagnaia has not had an easy time with his brand colleagues. And in particular one, Enea Bastianini, who will also be his teammate in the red box for the next two years. When you win at Misano by 34 thousandths, lose in Aragon by 43 thousandths and during the Malaysian Grand Prix, you have the “Bestia” in your wheel until you feel its hot breath on the back of your neck passing the finish of the Sepang track, we are far from the non-aggression pact ordered by a Ducati staff with their nerves on edge and sometimes in discussion on the pit wall. Paolo Ciabatti is part of this square and he says what he thinks about this story of instructions…
15 years of waiting were extinguished by a Pecco Bagnaia which thus relieved a factory Ducati who now even hopes to repeat the feat in the drivers' championship from 2023. Seven victories, 91 points collected and 17 ahead at the finish over fabio quartararo, one might believe this feat possible only because he also had seven other Ducatis on the track while the Frenchman was the only one able to maintain the Yamaha at the top of the table. Reading the starting grid, the theory holds. But once the lights went out and the race began, practice showed a completely different scenario.
The facts are there, but the doubts persist, so Paolo ciabatti, the sporting director of Ducati Corse, sets things straight… “ Obviously this year, in a few situations we were nervous because we knew Pecco was trying to do the impossible, which was to close a 91 point gap on Fabio Quartararo », he said on Motorsport. « We were quite worried in certain situations, at Misano and Aragon, and to be completely honest also at Sepang ».
A stage where we saw the open-air discussion between himself, Davide Tardozzi the team manager, and the boss Gigi Dall'Igna. He explains this meeting: “ à Sepang was a little different because we saw that Marco Bezzecchi closed the gap on Quartararo and if Bezzecchi was third with Pecco's victory, we would be world champions. So we were discussing what to do if Bezzecchi was third. But then Bezzecchi started to lose ground, so we said 'OK, we'll let it go' ».
Paolo Ciabatti: “ next year we will have two riders at Ducati who want to win the world championship«
This clarification made, he comes to the heart of the subject: “ but anyway, I think we've shown that everything that was said about team orders was rubbish, because if there were team orders, Jack Miller would not be second in Thailand and bastianini wouldn't win in Aragon, or try to pass Pecco across the finish line at Misano, or even try to challenge him at Sepang ».
It is the same bastianini who will join bagnaia next season with the factory team Ducati who therefore in no way holds his independence of mind against him... But would the wolf have entered the fold at the same time? “ Some might think we will have a tough situation to deal with next year » he analyzes. “ I think that it's a luxury to have in your team the world champion and the third in the general classification, and one won four races and the other seven. Between them, they have won more than 50% of the Grands Prix. I think it's a nice problem to deal with. ».
The man of Ducati finished : " I think, I hope, that we have the tools to manage the situation so that there is fair competition between the two competitors in the same box. But, I don't ask my teammate pilots to be friends, and I don't think the Pecco/Jack situation can repeat itself. It's one of those special relationships that stands out in the character of both drivers, and Jack was already there when Pecco was a rookie. So I think he helped him, and he's a nice guy. Next year we will have two riders who want to win the world championship. I think that we will handle the situation ».
