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After finding victory again in Le Mans, Danilo Petrucci probably would have expected something better from the Aragon weekend which, besides the controversy caused by yesterday's confusing Q1, only gave him an anonymous 15th place and one point, which isn’t worth much in a world championship that has very little to offer Danilo right now. But things didn’t seem to be going that badly on Sunday. The Ducati rider was riding behind Miller and Dovizioso, then something happened, and Pol Espargarò ended up touching him, pushing him back to 15th place.
"Let's say the race wasn't sensational, but 10th is different from 15th,” Danilo said. “I went a bit long to pass Cal Crutchlow, and Zarco also got ahead of me. Then, at Turn 4, Binder attacked me, and I wanted to cross, but Pol Espargarò rear-ended me, and I went off track. Fortunately, the ride-off area at Turn 5 is asphalt and I didn’t fall. I went to the Race Direction and they told me they saw the accident but, at that moment, they were busy with the Rookies Cup. We'll see if they’ll take action. I was quite satisfied before Pol, but now there’s no reason to rejoice.”
Besides this, your weekend was certainly marked by what happened yesterday in the Q1 with Dovizioso. Did you have the opportunity to speak with Andrea?
“No, we’ll be taking the same flight and will discuss it. I looked for a slipstream because I’ve been losing a lot on the straights this year. In any case, I don't know how much yesterday's result penalized Dovi's race. I saw that he made a good start and, at the first corner, he was already in front of me. Anyway, like I said, if the team asks me to help, I'm ready to do it.”
Why are you losing so much on the straights? It's true that you’re the heaviest Ducati rider, but the gap wasn't that big last year.
"I do not know. On a track like this, I lose 2-3 tenths per lap only on the straights, so I knew I would’ve suffered here, as in Austria and Barcelona, but there’s no solution right now. Today, I actually managed to keep up with Miller and Dovi at the start of the race. I'm satisfied with that, because Aragon is a difficult track for me with so little grip. I changed the set-up this morning, to try to brake harder, but I don't know if that worked."
Another key to this race was the choice of tires. Many went with the soft one while you, in Ducati, preferred the medium. Would anything have changed?
"Frankly, I never considered it. The soft tire wore out very quickly during practice, even the medium, actually, but there was more consistency."
Mir took the lead today in the world championship, and he’s never won a race. What do you think of this strange season?
“We’re all very close. I don’t think there’s ever been such a balance. There are very small gaps, and so whoever makes the right change can make a difference. This balance also brings opportunities to those starting from way back. It’s entertaining for those at home, but it’s complicated for those of us who end up fighting in a race for the podium and one for tenth place.”
