Метка: Thailand GP

Ducati ‘bothered’ Bagnaia is trailing Martin despite having most wins

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Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi admits that it “bothers” him that Francesco Bagnaia is only second in the MotoGP standings despite having won half the races so far.

Factory rider Bagnaia clinched his ninth grand prix victory from 18 rounds in last weekend’s Thailand GP, having successfully fended off an attack from Gresini rival Marc Marquez in the first part of the race.

But, with just two rounds to go, he still faces a substantial 17-point deficit to Pramac’s Jorge Martin, who has won three Sunday races in comparison, including just one since the summer break.

A string of crashes in grands prix and sprints, plus some misfortune thrown in between, have hurt the Italian’s chances of clinching a third straight title in the premier class.

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Speaking about the intra-Ducati championship battle, Tardozzi stressed that it is important that both Bagnaia and the factory team minimise errors in order to overcome Martin in the title race.

“In the end, if I have to say what bothers me a little is that Pecco has won half the races and is second in the championship. This is something that should and must give us pause for thought for the future,” Tardozzi told Motorsport.com’s Italian edition.

“We have made a few too many mistakes in the races, it must not be like that in the near future. But to have a rider who has won half the races is something important. 

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“Pecco is making history, right now he is outclassing a great guy like Casey Stoner, so thank you Pecco!”

Tardozzi also had words of encouragement for Martin, who he believes is now much more mature than during his failed title bid in 2023.

The former superbike racer explained that the Spaniard had learned to accept the best result possible on any given day, which has contributed to his consistency and a drastic reduction in crashes from leading positions.

«After last year when he lost the championship, Jorge was very good at understanding that he needed help on the emotional side,” said Tardozzi.

“I think that last winter he made big progress on a mental level and he’s putting it into practice. 

“It’s no coincidence that he’s the world championship leader: when he has to settle he settles, something he wouldn’t have done last year or in the past. We simply have to say well done to Jorge Martin.”



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Marquez rues mistake as Thailand MotoGP win slips through grasp

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Marc Marquez is adamant he would have come away with a second MotoGP win in eight days but for the costly crash that ended his hopes in a wet Thailand Grand Prix.

The Gresini Ducati rider endured a low-speed fall coming around turn nine on lap 12 while fighting for the lead in tricky wet conditions against Francesco Bagnaia.

Though he would go on to remount and claw back ground to score points for 11th place, Marquez was frustrated by another race day error had cost him a shot at back-to-back victories, claiming he had the measure of Bagnaia in terms of pace.

“We were the fastest today but now after the race, maybe we weren’t patient enough in that moment of the race,” he declared after the race.

“It’s true that it was super-tricky because I wasn’t able to overtake in a clear way against Bagnaia. I was always planning a very clear overtake, because I had the speed and I said ‘We will have more chances’.

“Always, I was trying to push, attack; then, when it was not possible, to cool down the front tyre, [then] attack again. 

“I was doing always a bit the ‘elastic’ during the race, and on that second attack I saw that I was much faster.

“I tried to not give up and I tried to follow him, and just one-and-a-half degrees more in that corner [turn eight] and I lost the front and I couldn’t save — it was very close.

“We are humans, we make mistakes, and today it was my turn.”

Despite the lower returns on his weekend, Marquez continues to hold down third place in the overall standings ahead of Enea Bastianini with two rounds of the season remaining.

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The spotlight already on KTM as Acosta’s star shines brighter

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As the curtain twitches in readiness for it being brought down on another season of MotoGP action, even with two rounds remaining it certainly isn’t premature to brand Pedro Acosta’s rookie campaign a roaring success.

It’s a statement that could justly hang on the strength of results alone, his five trips to the grand prix podium, four sprint top-three finishes and Japanese GP pole position at the very least ensuring some TV time for those sponsors that didn’t default to Ducati — thoughts and prayers to the others that sided with Honda and Yamaha.

More than that though, while he may be the only fresh face on the grid this year, in some ways it feels as though he has been around for much longer.

Granted this could be a trick of the mind permeated by that fresh face having received plenty of attention prior to his MotoGP graduation or because it’s easy to mistake his GasGas KTM Tech3 machine for a Ducati from a certain distance, but it’s also primarily a measure of how at home he has appeared in MotoGP since day one. Indeed, some quick turns out of the box in pre-season testing was enough for Acosta to skip the recipe instructions and get stuck into the mix.

The same was on show in Thailand where, in his first fully wet MotoGP race, Acosta learnt on the job to power to the podium only behind title fighters Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin.

“I was struggling a lot to warm up the brake disks and, I don’t know why but since I am in MotoGP, it is taking me a bit more time compared to, for example, Jack and Brad,” Acosta said after the race. “Also I was not having the best feeling with the rear tyre, out of Turns 5 and 6 I was spinning a lot and it was like riding on ice. It was quite tough to analyse in my head.

Acosta's late-race charge in Thailand saw him return to the podium

Acosta’s late-race charge in Thailand saw him return to the podium

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“I started to push to take out everything and it was quite tough at the beginning, also I ran wide at Turn 3 and Turn 1, but it is true that with five or six laps to go it was like I pulled a switch and I started to go fast. It is difficult to understand, but we were in the right direction.”

It’s therefore little wonder Acosta will graduate to full factory orange for 2025 as part of KTM’s line-up alongside Brad Binder, though the jury is perhaps still out on whether the promotion is more symbolic than reward in performance terms.

At the very least, Acosta’s switch will give KTM pride — and possibly a touch of smugness — at seeing the fruits of its investment in the youngster reap rewards, not least because it puts some faith back into the firm’s esteemed junior development after misfiring with Remy Gardner, Raul Fernandez and Augusto Fernandez in recent seasons. But next season will see a turning of the tables that will shift the onus back towards KTM to reward Acosta with his investment in the manufacturer for taking him onto the next step, or more accurately the top step of the podium.

While KTM has provided the platform to get Acosta to MotoGP, it is now up to the manufacturer to springboard him towards race victories he is evidently capable of achieving

Acosta has also conceded he has to “bite my tongue” and bank finishes in order to gain race data and experience with an eye on the future – having crashed out of the Thailand sprint race to go alongside his two grands prix crashes at each Misano round, the Japanese GP main race and the Australian GP sprint which ruled him out of the next day’s full-distance event.

“I have to focus on finishing races even if I have to bite my tongue and finish fifth,” Acosta said after crashing out of the Thailand sprint on Saturday. “Many times we are at a point where we push and we don’t crash because that’s the way it goes, and many other days we push to be with them [Ducati] and we crash. Now the goal is to finish races, which will be important to start well next year.”

It’s by no means a foregone conclusion either. While KTM has readily earmarked itself as a familiar frontrunner ever since its breakthrough season in 2020, it hasn’t been matched with so much race-winning silverware.

KTM's last grand prix win came two years ago in Thailand

KTM’s last grand prix win came two years ago in Thailand

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Miguel Oliveira brought about its most recent win at the 2022 Thailand GP, this weekend marking an unhappy two-year anniversary, and while he achieved four of KTM’s six victories to date, his form elsewhere was patchy. Binder on the other hand — winner of the other two — has established himself as a steadfast racer rather than an out-and-out contender for victories each weekend.

Of greater concern however is that while KTM has avoided the slump in competitiveness experienced by Honda and Yamaha, it has made only modest progress over the past four seasons amid a deluge of well proven Ducati bikes.

It hasn’t gone unnoticed, of course, with the big axe being wielded at a senior level to remove Francesco Guidotti a year before his contract expires. In his place comes Aki Ajo, a shrewd choice with impressive credentials cultivated by his eponymous team’s success in Moto2 and Moto3. More importantly, however, he is someone who shared KTM’s vision for Acosta long before he reached the heady heights of MotoGP.

Even so, while KTM has provided the platform to get Acosta to MotoGP, it is now up to the manufacturer to springboard him towards race victories he is evidently capable of achieving.

This brings us to another more engaging trait of Acosta’s: His ambition. Indeed, for all of his confident swagger on track, Acosta exerts similarly bolshie determination off it.

For a manufacturer not adverse to the odd contractual bungle, credit then to Acosta for being the one to issue the ultimatum of a guaranteed KTM seat in 2024 or he’d head elsewhere. While KTM sensibly bowed to his demand, it’s indicative of the issues it may face in the future in retaining him if it can’t find those precious few tenths that will make the difference between victory and making up the numbers in MotoGP.

For the most part though, KTM isn’t prepared to rest on its laurels for 2025. In addition to Ajo’s appointment, there is talk Dani Pedrosa will assume a more senior management role in addition to continuing to provide his invaluable development intel.

Can Acosta reuniting with team boss Ajo provide KTM a spark to reignite its MotoGP form?

Can Acosta reuniting with team boss Ajo provide KTM a spark to reignite its MotoGP form?

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Plus, while Tech3’s new line-up of Maverick Vinales and Enea Bastianini is at odds with KTM’s desire to promote young talent, their experience and success with other manufacturers ensures the Austrian firm has arguably the most intriguing rider line-up among its four riders.

No rider is bigger than the team it races for but in this case, KTM is very aware of the potential it has racing with Acosta.

As for whether KTM has the ability to realise Acosta’s full potential? That remains the lingering question mark…

Can KTM provide Acosta and co with the bike to fight Ducati in 2025?

Can KTM provide Acosta and co with the bike to fight Ducati in 2025?

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images



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Bagnaia admits Thailand GP was a «must-win» as he cuts gap to Martin

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Francesco Bagnaia admitted to some relief as he bounced back to secure victory in a “must-win” Thailand Grand Prix after being defeated by Jorge Martin in the sprint encounter.

The Italian achieved his first win in wet weather conditions, bringing his 2024 tally up to nine successes over full-length races. 

Coming after he finished third behind Martin in the sprint race, the double defending champion benefitted from a wide moment by his Pramac Ducati rival to move into the lead on lap five.

Though he’d engage in a to-and-fro with the close-following Marc Marquez in the ensuing laps, the Gresini rider’s fall on lap 12 would release Bagnaia to race home for an important victory.

“Absolutely, it was a must-win,” he declared. “In terms of the championship, not too much. But in terms of feeling, in terms of mental side, it was very important — not just for me, but also for him.

“I want to dedicate this victory to my team, because after the morning we just sat down and spoke about what to do to improve the situation because I was struggling a lot on braking.

“And we did it, again. I’m so happy. It wasn’t an easy race because it was very long and stressful, but as soon as I started I saw that my feeling was very good and I saw Jorge pushing a lot.

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team, Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team, Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“But I just decided to wait two more laps to make sure the rear was more ready, and as soon as it was I just tried to catch him back.

“Then I opened the gap, but Marc was pushing hard. The lap he crashed on we were two tenths faster in sector three, so it was an incredible lap already and the pace was super strong.”

The results have reduced Bagnaia’s deficit to Martin as the championship protagonists are now separated by 17 points with two rounds and four races remaining.

“It’s a good day for us for everything,” added Bagnaia. “And the 17 [points] that is the gap is a good number for me. It was a day to make the difference and luckily we did it.

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“I knew it was important that I finished first rather than second to gain more points for the championship.”

Bringing his career tally of MotoGP wins to 27, this was nonetheless Bagnaia’s first achieved in wet conditions, a small career milestone that gives him confidence moving forward.

“Because I always crashed, but I was always not fast enough,” he said. “Two years ago I was fighting for the win [in the wet in Thailand], but I finished two seconds behind the leader.

“The pace was there but not enough. Today from the start I believed a lot in trying to do it, and it was the best time.” 



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Martin not focused on playing the points game despite MotoGP title advantage

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Jorge Martin says he has no designs on playing the points game as he chases his first MotoGP world title despite the possibility of doing so without winning another race this season.

The Pramac Ducati rider scored a small but significant success with his run to second place in the Thailand Grand Prix sprint race at the Chang International Circuit by finishing ahead of arch title rival Francesco Bagnaia, who took third.

Extending his advantage to 22 points over the Italian with five races remaining – three grands prix and two sprints – it means Martin can finish second to Bagnaia in each and still clinch the title.

However, it’s a permutation Martin isn’t dwelling on: “If they said you only need to be fifth or 10th, I don’t know how to be that.

“I only know how to do my best. So the best way to give 100% is to do my best — but I’m not silly, I want to control the risk.”

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Indeed, Martin gave an example of the small margins that exist between himself and Bagnaia when he ran deep into Turn 1.

Having dropped to sixth behind Bagnaia as a consequence, Martin says he can take satisfaction from having still gotten the better of his Ducati stablemate come the chequered flag, having factored in the defending world champion in the first corner tussle.

“It was either release the brakes and lose some position or go wide and hit Pecco, so I decided to go wide,” he added.

“It was difficult afterwards, I was sixth or seventh going into the third corner, it was really hot in the pack but I was riding well and competitive, that’s the important thing.”

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He added: “I had to push more than expected and overtake riders like Acosta and Pecco, who are really strong on the brakes, which was complicated.

“It has been a good sprint, but I know that tomorrow more riders will improve, and it is essential to start well, keep calm, and do our best.”



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Wins won’t be enough to defend MotoGP title now against Martin

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Francesco Bagnaia aired his frustration at suffering a slight but important loss to MotoGP title rival Jorge Martin with his run to third place in the Thailand Grand Prix sprint race.

Though the race itself went the way of Enea Bastianini, Bagnaia’s failure to defend against Martin for second place sees his rival ease his overall advantage out to 22 points with five races remaining.

It means Martin can afford to finish second in each of the remaining three grands prix and two sprint races to secure this year’s title, even if Bagnaia wins them all.

As such, Bagnaia doesn’t want to leave anything to chance in these remaining races but remained frustrated to have been overhauled by Martin in a straight fight having started from pole.

“My feeling wasn’t ideal as it was this morning,” he admitted.

“I struggled to be competitive on the braking, my fastest sectors during the weekend was sector one and three, today I was losing that.

“We luckily lost just two points and we have tomorrow to try to close this gap, because Jorge can just finish second and still be champion. We have to focus on the results and be more perfect.”

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Bagnaia also raised a view that Martin violated track limits enough to earn a penalty, claiming to have counted four occasions in which he strayed onto the green.

“I thought so and I started to count because when I saw it twice I thought one more is a penalty so I counted two more, but maybe I counted wrong.”

Bagnaia not seeking in-house Ducati help in title bid

Bagnaia isn’t prepared to count on other Ducati riders to side with him rather than stablemate Martin in his attempt to make it three titles in a row.

“I know it is hard to believe but I never had any help by anyone in Ducati. I always like a clean race and clean battle, I try to be as clean as possible and not touch anyone.

“Also, I don’t want any help and I will not ask for any.”

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Bastianini wins sprint as Martin extends points lead

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Enea Bastianini cruised to his second Saturday success of the MotoGP season as he saw off feuding title rivals Jorge Martin and Francesco Bagnaia to win the Thailand Grand Prix Sprint race at Buriram.

The factory Ducati rider capitalised on a scuffle between Pramac’s Martin and team-mate Bagnaia at the first corner to grab the lead of a race he would control right to the chequered flag.

He led home Martin in second place, the Spaniard getting the better of title rival Bagnaia to eke his overall advantage out to 22 points with Sunday’s full-length encounter still to come.

The race outcome would be largely assured moments after the start when Martin’s deep inside line into turn one sent him wide on the exit, taking Bagnaia out to the run-off with him and allowing Bastianini to slice past both on the long run to the hairpin.

Once in front Bastianini would assert his control to open up an early half-second advantage that he would extend out to a winning margin of 1.5s.

If Bastianini had it relatively easy out front, then Martin by contrast was made to work hard for second after slipping down to fifth place behind Bagnaia in the wake of their turn one skirmish.

Nevertheless, after disposing of Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez, Martin set to work on relieving Bagnaia of second and duly succeeded with a well-judged overtake coming through the flip-flop at turns 10 and 11.

From here Martin would have the measure of his rival to hold position to the flag and nudge his advantage up with five races of the season remaining, including two sprints.

Enea Bastianini, Ducati Team

Enea Bastianini, Ducati Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

In fourth, Marquez faded from the podium battle after a bright start, the Gresini rider having plenty in hand over brother and team-mate Alex Marquez in fifth after Acosta low-sided out of the position on lap four.

His exit allowed Ducati to lock out the entire top eight with Franco Morbidelli (Pramac), Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio di Giannantonio (both VR46) taking sixth, seventh and eighth respectively, with KTM’s Brad Binder the only point-scorer on alternative machinery in ninth.

MotoGP Thailand GP — Sprint results



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Yamaha still not a match for my riding style

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Alex Rins says he is still struggling to adapt his riding style to the Yamaha M1 package and feels he cannot simply copy Fabio Quartararo’s efforts in MotoGP.

With Rins approaching the conclusion of his maiden premier class campaign with the Japanese manufacturer, he has consistently been unable to match team-mate Quartararo’s performances and results.

That has continued in Thailand, with Quartararo ending Friday 12th overall and Rins down in 18th, with almost half a second splitting them on single-lap pace.

After a 2023 MotoGP season blighted by injury, Rins’ switch from Honda to Yamaha has seen him struggle to get back to the form that had him score five victories with Suzuki, along with his sole triumph for Honda in the United States last year.

While Rins’ arrival coincided with Yamaha’s ongoing difficulty in extracting more performance from the M1 package, the Spaniard — who has a best result of ninth place in Aragon this season – feels he still doesn’t have a bike to suit his riding style.

«Every time I come back from the track I try to give good feedback, I still do not feel that they have given me a bike that resembles my riding style,» he commented after Friday practice for the Thailand Grand Prix.

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Rins feels he simply cannot copy Quartararo’s riding style and that it wouldn’t be a fruitful pursuit regardless, given the French rider is also unable to be competitive at the sharp end of the grid.

«I cannot copy Fabio’s bike, I do not have his riding style,» he added. «When I come back from the track the feedback I give is the best I know. In the end there are no bad people here in MotoGP, Yamaha is a factory team that has the best people.

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«Obviously he is going through a tough time, but Fabio has won a championship and many races with this bike, and now he is not achieving it, and there is a reason for that.

«We are in a period of quite a bit of stress, of evolution and maybe that is what we have to go through now.»



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Marquez doesn’t consider himself fastest in Thai GP despite topping practice

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Marc Marquez believes he is not the fastest MotoGP rider in this weekend’s Thailand Grand Prix despite topping Friday practice with a new lap record.

Returning to the scene of his sixth and most recent MotoGP World Championship title victory in 2019, Marquez was in slick form throughout the day en route to the overall top spot in Friday afternoon’s P2 session.

Stopping the clock at 1m29.165s on the Gresini Ducati, his effort was enough for him to edge out championship Jorge Martin by just over a tenth of a second and lower the erstwhile lap record.

Coming after he notched up his third victory of the season in Phillip Island less than a week ago, a buoyant Marquez is keen to make that precursor to achieving his objective of improving his qualifying performances.

However, Marquez suggested that practice results did not provide a true picture of the pecking order, insisting that riders like Pramac’s Martin again hesitated from showing their true pace on Friday.

“I’m happy to have started the weekend in this way, which is important,” he said. “It’s true that the pace is good, it’s not the fastest one like in Australia.

«I think Martin is faster than us and [Enea] Bastianini, when he is fast on Friday it means that he will be super fast all weekend, but let’s see what we can do.”

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

The positive opener leaves Marquez optimistic of a similar challenge towards the sharp end in qualifying, an area where the Spaniard has struggled for consistency in his first season racing Ducati machinery.

The 31-year-old has qualified on the front row only three time since the summer break, with an average starting position of 6.25 during this period.

“I have the potential that from the initial moment I am riding very fast,” he added. “In the first part of the season I was always struggling on the Friday and I’d improve a lot over the weekend.

“Now I am starting Friday with a good pace so the way to improve is safe. Already the lap record, so if I can do a 1m 29.1s [in qualifying] I will sign up for it.”

Marquez is keeping a lid on his expectations for Saturday’s qualifying session, saying he will be happy as long as he is able to qualify inside the first two rows on the grid.

«Here everyone is pushing and trying to get the maximum,» he said. «Both Martín and Pecco Bagnaia are raising the bar very high, but we also have our personal battle between me and Enea Bastianini and that, for my part at least, leads me to take quite a few risks to try to be there with them.

«I had a very good lap and it’s really positive to start a Friday like this. But tomorrow is the day we have to set a clear and realistic goal, which is to try to be on the second row.»

Marquez remains the only rider to score a grand prix victory on last year’s Ducati GP23 bike in a season that has been dominated by the latest iteration of the Desmosedici.

While a fouth victory would make 2024 his most successful season his last title-winning campaign in 2019, he reiterated that his goal is to build on his recent results and put himself in the best possible position for his year with the factory Ducati team.

«Obviously the more victories the better, but it is an irrelevant fact, which you remember now because I am there, but otherwise nobody remembers [in the future],» he said.

«Obviously if I can win four races it is better than three, but the important thing is to continue with this consistency that I am showing, since Austria I have taken a small step and I am confirming it in all the circuits I go to.»

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