The 2022 MotoGP season has finally started this Friday with the holding of the first two free practice sessions of the year on the Lusail circuit, in Qatar. A first day that Pecco Bagnaia finished in tenth place, and whose choice of engine caused a lot of talk in the paddock.
The Italian driver answered journalists' questions at the end of FP2. We transcribe his comments here in full.
Pecco, what is the exact situation with the Ducati engine? What specification did you actually use today? Why don't you use the 2022 engine?
« It is not true that we are not using the 2022 engine. We are simply using the best package available that we were able to establish following the tests in Mandalika. I think there is still way too much noise around Ducati, and it's surprising that no one is as talkative when it comes to other bikes. Everyone always talks about Ducati, and it's something quite strange. We simply used the best package available to us, as everyone does, I must say. I am convinced that the engine I use constitutes our best working basis. »
“There is always a lot of noise around Ducati”
Is this an engine that you tested at Jerez last November?
«
No, it's a bit of a mix. This is not the engine we used in Jerez, nor is it the one we used in Mandalika, nor in Malaysia. It's a mix between the engine we used last year and the one that was planned for this year. »
Was the decision not to retain the final version of the engine taken in consultation with the entire team?
« It is a collegial decision. After the various test sessions we had a good idea of the potential of each specification, and we chose this one simply because it was the one that performed the best. »
“We chose this engine specification because it is the most efficient”
Your fall during FP1 occurred well upstream of the turn. Do you know what caused your fall? You seemed to be confused when you got up…
« I was just unhappy that I crashed in the first free practice session. FP1 is not as useful a session as FP2 or FP4. FP1 and FP3 are sessions where the conditions are generally different from those encountered in racing, and therefore we have to use different tires. In this case, my front tire was just too cold and I crashed because of it.
»
It didn't seem like an easy day for you. Do you think you can have a little more margin compared to Q2 tomorrow?
«
I'm not very happy with this day, especially regarding my feelings at the front. Perhaps it is linked to the conditions which were not exceptional, but I remain confident in my ability to progress tomorrow, because we know why we had difficulty today entering the corners. So we're going to work on that, and we have a pretty clear idea of what we need to do in that regard. But it is certain that I was not very comfortable on the bike today. »
Qatar GP MotoGP – Combined times ranking:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
