Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia reveals that he had to adopt a defensive strategy during MotoGP’s Americas Grand Prix due to issues with chattering, which impacted his performance. Despite initially being in contention for a podium finish, Bagnaia slipped down to fifth place by the end of the race. This problem caused him to lose sight of the leading group and he also fell behind his teammate Enea Bastianini and points leader Jorge Martin in the second half of the race. Bagnaia once again had to settle for preserving his position and ensuring he didn’t drop further down the standings. He expressed his disappointment, stating that he had a strong start and believed he could fight for a win or podium finish. However, the chattering and vibrations on the left side of his bike made it difficult for him to manage and caused significant damage to his right-side tire. As a result, he had to adopt a defensive approach early on in the race. Bagnaia remains hopeful that his team will find a solution to these issues and he can return to battling for the top positions. Despite Bagnaia’s struggles, his teammate Bastianini secured a podium finish, giving Ducati representation on the rostrum at the Circuit of the Americas. Bagnaia acknowledged the contrasting experiences between himself and Bastianini, with the latter not experiencing any chattering throughout the weekend. Bagnaia also mentioned that it is challenging to analyze the situation with three bikes, especially considering Franky Morbidelli’s learning phase and the differences in their packages. He highlighted Bastianini’s difficulties with the brakes and bike turning, but praised his teammate’s strong performance in the race. Bagnaia’s challenging start to the season has left him in fifth place in the Riders’ standings, with a 30-point gap separating him from championship leader Martin.
Lando Norris, the British driver for McLaren, expressed his disappointment with the team's decision to set up their MCL38 Formula 1 car for cooler conditions at the Emilia...
Read more