The Spaniard on his sixth consecutive podium: “Happy to be the second Ducati on the track today. Pecco has something more here. I would prefer to start fourth, instead of third. Future? This year’s situation is less complicated than last year.”
June 1, 2024
Scarperia – Marc Márquez he came second in the Mugello sprint and, during the awards ceremony, part of the grandstand did whistled (which Bagnaia did not approve). Marquez commented with diplomacysaying that compared to other years, now that he is a Ducati rider, they have decreased.
93 also talked about the competitionfrom the Q2 where he fell and of marketexplaining that this year’s choice is much simpler than that of a year ago, when he decided to leave Honda.
Net of the words Marquez seems to be happy and convinced of his own possibilities and his – now his – Ducati.
Between Saturday and Sunday it is the sixth consecutive podium…
“We’re set for second place, but it’s one more podium. Another day of fighting for the top positions and in which we demonstrated speed. I had a bad start, it’s one of the pending things for tomorrow, but other than that the speed was there. Pecco was a little ahead and despite everything I tried. I got closer little by little, we had a very similar pace but when I tried to catch him, with two laps to go, I made a mistake at turn 10, where I crashed in Q2. I’m happy to be the second Ducati on the track”
Are you close to victory or not?
“Yes, if you’re second you’re closer than ever, but it’s something that doesn’t obsess me. For me, racing at Mugello, on a circuit where the GP24 has something more, and fighting with them satisfies me. And also seeing that we are ahead of Bezzecchi or my brother, who were fast here last year, this also gives me confidence”
On the whistles…
“It’s a 50-50. Until a year ago it was 80-20. Now it’s 50-50, being on a Ducati here in Italy helps”
In the last two laps did you think more about the World Championship?
“Not at the World Cup, but we think about it. When you see that the one in front is 0.3 away you can warm up, but if you see that the one in front is 0.7 away and there’s a lap and a half to go… recovering that gap from Pecco at Mugello, where he won in the last two races, is like in the qualifications, finish them or not finish them…”
You recovered in Pecco in T1 and T2, he was better in T3, what happened there?
“It’s his strong point. In turn 8-9 he went very fast all weekend and that’s where I lose the most. But I catch up in other sectors. Let’s see if tomorrow we can be more balanced in all sectors”
And by looking at his telemetry can you do what he does?
“No. Like he can’t do what I do on other curves. Or what does Martín do. Pecco does the fast point better than the 8-9 and even if you try to match it, you can’t. Furthermore, there are two corners where it is better not to find the limit, they are two very fast corners, think twice. I try, but it goes faster there.”
LIs the decision about your future more complicated this year than last year?
“No, last year was much, much more complicated, much more difficult. This year I have three scenarios in which I would feel content, happy and above all satisfied. And I can rest assured because one of the three will happen.”
Could today’s and tomorrow’s races count towards Ducati’s decision?
“I don’t think anything changes. Ducati, the engineers know what is there and the progression from the beginning of the season. I’m happy, I gave 100%, working with the engineers. And being in a satellite team I feel important, and this is an aspect that gives me confidence.”
On Bagnaia…
“It’s true that Pecco has something more than us here, he seems to drive very simply and in fact he has won the last two races here. It’s one of the circuits where he is very strong. But even so we were very close.”
Tomorrow Marquez will start third, because Bagnaia, penalized on Friday, will go from second to fifth. Surprisingly, however, Marquez would still prefer to start fourth…
“One of Pecco’s key points today was leading the race from the start. Tomorrow we will see if we can get a better start. I just focus on myself. Honestly, I prefer to start fourth rather than third, the difference is very small but the way of braking at the first corner is better from fourth place. Other than that, let’s see what we can do.”
Why did you crash in Q2?
“I was coming in 0.2 seconds faster than 1’44.5. I always attack, but today I said: ‘It doesn’t matter what happens’. Because I know it’s essential to start from the front. And in fact I was coming very fast, I came out of turn 9 faster and braked later for turn 10. The result? A fall”
