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MotoGP, Bagnaia: "I'm human and Italian ... sure I'll feel the pressure!"

"Today my thoughts for the championship limited me only on the flying lap, I kept a little too much margin. Quartararo is the fastest on the pace, but I'm not far from him."

MotoGP: Bagnaia: "I'm human and Italian ... sure I'll feel the pressure!"

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During the morning shift it seemed to see Bagnaia's stunt double on the track in Valencia. The ruthless chronometer put him at just the 17th quickest time. With the afternoon, the Pecco that we have come to know this season began to return. Maybe not yet at his best, but enough to get in the slipstream of Quartararo. Problems with setting and perhaps also with pressure?

He gave the answer: "In FP1 the bike didn't work well, with the wind I struggled in braking and there wasn't much grip. I improved my feelings during the session, but it wasn't enough. In the afternoon the same thing happened, I started a little better than in the morning but the confidence was not the best. On my second exit, however, I took a big step forward and managed to keep a pace similar to those of Fabio and Marc. The flying lap was also quite good, but I lacked some confidence and I didn't want to make mistakes like I did in Malaysia. I accepted being a bit slow in some areas because I was struggling to get into the corners fast, maybe I kept a little too much margin. "

Did nerves affect you?

“Certainly it limited me in something, but not much today. More than anything else, the bike is different from last year's and on this track I feel it more, as I said I struggle a bit under braking. We worked on that, we improved, but something is still missing. I rather think that in the flying lap my thoughts for the championship limited me”.

Did you expect to struggle so much here in Valencia?

“I was sure I would have felt better on the bike, but the Desmosedici has a different balance than a year ago. We worked well and now I'm happy”.

What is the goal for tomorrow?

"I'll try to get directly into Q2 and I think I can do it, it's the main goal. At the moment Quartararo is the fastest on the pace, but I'm not far from him. Tomorrow morning it should be colder but also less wind, so it could be better for us”.

In Malaysia, the tension in the garage was high, today instead?

“The atmosphere during the race was quite intense (smiles), but I feel like I always do. During the weekend I don't feel this tension, during the race I don't know… but I'm human and Italian, so I will definitely feel the pressure (laughs)”.

Do you feel more relaxed after this first day?

“FP1 is a session in which I always try to understand the situation, I don't want to go out on the track and go crazy immediately. There are times when it comes better and others when it gets worse, but this morning I suffered from a lack of confidence and I still didn't get discouraged. The top 10 are all close but after that there is a big gap, what we did today will help me to be fast tomorrow too. "

In a situation like yours, is it better not to look at your position?

“You have to do it, because it is important to get into Q2, but there are times when it is better not to look at the times, it can be misleading. It is more useful to concentrate on riding ”.

Jokingly, Quartararo recalled, among the famous World Cup finals, the football one with Zidane’s head-butt on Materazzi ...

"I don't think we'll get to that point (laughs) I hope not to see any moves like that, also because it would be a big problem."

Are you keeping an eye on Quartararo?

“Today he was very fast, he did one of his best Fridays since the beginning of the year, he has always been among the fastest in terms of pace. We have different approaches: he does longer rides where he is very consistent, perhaps because the bike also allows him, while sometimes the Ducati needs a little more work. In the end, you have to think about yourself, I know that Fabio went fast but also that the flying lap comes good for me”.

 

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