During this weekend's French Grand Prix, the leader of the Ducati clan Pecco Bagnaia will be keen to consolidate his leading position in the championship, taken from Marco Bezzecchi at the end of the last round of the calendar in Jerez. It won't be so obvious despite the fact that he has in his hands the best machine on the field, a Desmosedici which has built up a solid track record in Sarthe in recent years. Which is not the case for the reigning World Champion…
Ducati has won three premier category victories on the Le Mans track, all achieved during the three recent years with three different drivers: Danilo Petrucci (2020) Jack Miller (2021) et Enea Bastianini (2022) Francis Bagnaia qualified on pole position last year, which is the only pole for Ducati on the category track.
But if the Italian has three podiums at Le Mans, he has none in MotoGP. His track record is in fact as follows: P3 in Moto3 in 2015 on Mahindra, his first Grand Prix podium, second in Moto2 in 2017 and a victory in Moto2 in 2018 from pole. Last year he took pole but crashed while chasing bastianini For victory. He finished P4 in 2021, his best MotoGP result in Sarthe.
Davide Tardozzi Ducati: “ you have to respect Marc Marquez, if someone underestimates Marc, he is making a big mistake »
One of his bosses in the red box, but also one of his first fans Davide Tardozzi nevertheless believes that its driver will defeat the Indian sign from Sarthe in 2023: “ à Jerez, he proved he was number 1 » he said to Trademarks. " I think the races he is doing this year show that he is the best. In every race the rivals change, but he always fights in front and I think that confirms that he deserved the title ».
That being said, the team manager still remains cautious about the shape of this competition: “ there are too many races to compete » he explains, “ and too many points, also considering the sprint races ". So much so that it still hasn't been released Marc Marquez from his list of the most dangerous adversaries: “ you have to have respect for a driver like Marc Marquez, because when he gets back into shape, he will be a problem for everyone. Nothing can be said yet. We still have need five or six races to determine who will play the championship ».
He finishes : " I believe and hope that Pecco is one of them. But you have to respect Marc Marquez. If someone underestimates Marc, he is making a big mistake ».
