Paolo Ciabatti, Ducati Corse sporting director, explains what happened at the pit wall during the race in Malaysia.
The countdown at Ducati begins less than a week after Valencia GPlast round of the 2022 championship. It will be a Sunday of well-deserved glory for the Borgo Panigale manufacturer, with Pecco Bagnaia a stone’s throw from the drivers’ title, and from the Triple Crown, after having already won the constructors’ and teams’ titles. But the Ducati managers want to arrive calmly at the last appointment in Cheste, keeping away unfounded rumors and inelegant whispers.
The halo of false fame reigns around the team Lenovo Ducati, after the display of the sign with the name of Pecco Bagnaia addressed to Enea Bastianini during the Sepang GP. A way to remind the Romagna rider of the Gresini team that behind him was the compatriot of the factory team, fighting for the World Championship, and that dangerous maneuvers must be avoided. At the Ducati pit wall, moments of pure anxiety were experienced when the ‘Beast’ was placed in front, slowing down Pecco’s race pace a little and allowing Fabio Quartararo to approach dangerously.
Paolo Ciabatti and the race in Malaysia
Bagnaia has already lost too many points on the road this season MotoGP. The top management still had in mind what happened at Le Mans, when Pecco crashed shortly after being overtaken by Enea. Or what happened in Argentina in 2016 with Andrea Iannone who hit Andrea Dovizioso just before the finish line, throwing victory and second place to the winds. Episodes that absolutely must not be repeated.
The ds Paolo Ciabatti he clarified what he had said and done during the Malaysian GP, when the cameras resumed him talking closely with Gigi Dall’Igna and Davide Tardozzi. “We discussed which strategy to choose. Because for Pecco it was too important not only to win, but also not to take unnecessary risks“, He explained to Speedweek.com. “Aeneas is known to always go on the attack in a very aggressive manner. And we didn’t want the Le Mans crash to repeat itself“.
In the end, the Ducati triumvirate decided not to intervene in the dispute between Bastianini and Bagnaia, which ended with Pecco’s victory. Even in Valencia there will be no need to intervene with team orders. And Paolo Ciabatti recalls what happened in 2017: “We reached the final race with Andrea Dovizioso in a situation similar to that of Fabio Quartararo and we lost the title fight against Marquez“.
