Davide Tardozzi was the guest of motogp.com for a good, uncompromising conversation which could only have been possible thanks to the passion and fire that always animate the team manager of the official Ducati team. The latter notably clarified things about the detractors who regret seeing eight Ducatis on the MotoGP grid while the theme of the team instructions fueled the column, and firstly because of this large workforce. A little music that would give Ducati a bad role. It was therefore time to recall the facts and make the grumpy people face their own responsibilities, which means that Tardozzi's message is also addressed to other manufacturers and certain drivers...
Davide Tardozzi spoke on various subjects before a Malaysian Grand Prix where his Ducati troops could experience the hour of glory with the coronation of Pecco Bagnaia. A party is therefore being prepared in silence, and if the arrival of the 19th round of the season at Sepang allows it to be in full swing, the team manager will not like the jubilation to be spoiled by bad sleepers. So, before they eventually showed up, he wanted to tell them his four truths...
The Italian begins with the eight motorcycles taken out of the Borgo Panigale workshops and put on the track: “ but why didn't the other factories offer other motorcycles? There are 8 Ducatis because the other manufacturers did not offer bikes to the other teams. Ducati didn't force anyone to take their bikes. The other manufacturers did not provide a motorcycle. Honda didn't want another team, Yamaha didn't want another team and Suzuki never wanted another team and now they're leaving. So why should Ducati be blamed for supplying bikes to other teams who request them? I ask the question again, because I want to emphasize it, why didn't other manufacturers offer their motorcycle? ».
He adds : " behind that there is a Ducati strategy which helps the satellite teams and their riders to have young riders and fast riders. It's a strategy we decided 2 years ago and now we have fast bikes and fast riders. It is our strategy to help satellite teams to have the best equipment for their driver so why should we be accused of anything to achieve good sporting policy? Ducati has a good sports program for satellite teams ».
Davide Tardozzi: “ if riders criticize this situation they just have to ask their own manufacturer to make more bikes and provide more satellite teams »
And on this question, he ends: “ if riders criticize this situation they just have to ask their own manufacturer to make more bikes and provide more satellite teams but they don't accuse Ducati of anything ". Who are these remarks addressed to? It will be recalled that Fabio Quartararo had a declared time in Aragon : " It doesn't seem normal to me that a company would tell 7 other pilots to help one » …Precisely, the instructions…
It is the consequence of numbers and it is called discipline in the ranks by team instructions. There too, Davide Tardozzi steps up to the plate: “ team instructions? What I saw in Misano with Enea Bastianini were not team instructions. He did not finish 2nd at 34 seconds because he received a team instruction, even in Aragon he demonstrated that there was no team instruction. Jacques Miller it's the same thing in Montegi ».
And in Thailand? … “ Now I would like to clarify Johann Zarco in Thailand. Zarco then recovered very quickly but if you understand racing and tire wear you know that from one lap to the next the front wet tire can collapse on the drying track. We saw it on the timesheet for example with Raul Fernandez who was very fast and the next lap was very slow. Zarco came back up and was able to overtake Marquez. But he understood that attacking Pecco in these conditions was dangerous. Marquez tried hard to pass Pecco and he didn't succeed. Johann thought it was too dangerous to overtake Pecco and obviously also because he was on a Ducati. But I want to say that this was Johann Zarco's decision alone, it was not a Ducati decision. ».
He finishes : " then obviously we were happy that Zarco behaved like this. I would like to point out that this was his decision alone. It wasn't a Ducati decision. The only thing we tell our Ducati riders is not to do stupid things to a Ducati rider. Now I want to be clear: it is obvious that if, in the last race, the championship is decided for a place, we will give the order to leave it, we're not stupid either and everyone would do the same thing ».
