In the Ducati camp, a gripping duel between Francesco Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini is on the horizon for the 2023 MotoGP season. Here’s what the riders have to say. Hot event coming up, place your bets with https://22bet.ug/virtualsports
Francesco Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini dueled no less than four times for a race win in the past MotoGP season. Bastianini came out on top at Le Mans and Aragon, while Bagnaia won the duels at Misano and Sepang. The duel between two Italians who both compete for Ducati caused quite a stir.
In 2023, the additional spice will be added to the Ducati-internal battle. This is because Bagnaia and Bastianini are now teammates in the factory team. Ducati has already experienced explosive partnerships there in the past with Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone or Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo. Is there a threat of thick air in the red box again?
“We both have the same goal and will give our maximum to achieve it. It will be a tough duel, but at the same time we have to be intelligent and respectful of each other,” Bagnaia said Monday at Ducati’s MotoGP launch in Madonna di Campiglio. The atmosphere in the pits will certainly be different. With Jack (Miller, note) everything was already rehearsed, with Enea I’m now starting from scratch. Our duels last year caused quite a stir because we are both Italian and people really look for such duels. But this aggressiveness came more from the outside. We always had a good relationship and could talk to each other normally. Of course, I get frustrated when Enea beats me, but it’s the same with any other rider.”
Currently, then, there are no disputes between the two Italian alphatians. Bagnaia’s answer to the question of how he would characterize his new teammate should therefore also not be taken too seriously: “The only correct answer to this question is that Enea is a bastard. That’s what he said himself last year.” Bagnaia is alluding to a now legendary quote by Bastianini, who said in a post-race interview that he had “pushed like a bastard.” Bagnaia was eventually persuaded to speak more kindly: “Enea is a smart guy and very competitive. What he showed in 2022 on a previous year’s bike in a customer team was outstanding.
The challenger in the Ducati camp is also full of praise for the reigning world champion: “Pecco is the world champion. I’m not. He is very talented and currently the fastest motorcycle racer in the world. I’m looking forward to fighting him.”
