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The British weekend at Silverstone ended with Ducati domination, with eight riders in the top ten, but standing out among them all was Enea Bastianini, absolute protagonist in the sprint and Sunday's race. The Beast sharpened his claws during the summer break and there could not have been a better start for him in this second half of the season. A victory, in conjunction with MotoGP's 75th anniversary celebrations, which lightens the heart and mind of the Rimini native, "I'm cancelling last year, it was a disaster," he later said thinking back to last season and the injury.
Starting third on the front row after an excellent qualifying, often his weak point of the weekend, Enea kept pace with the best behind Aleix by taking advantage of excellent tire management. A management that allowed him to lash out in the final stages of the race, imposing himself first on Bagnaia's GP24 and then going on to catch up, tenth after tenth, with a very competitive Jorge Martin. Three Ducati factory bikes on the podium then, and the natural question is on everyone's mind: did Borgo Panigale make a mistake by letting two of their best riders go? Enea himself wonders, but only the future will tell. In the meantime, Enea is doing the ola on the podium, enjoying the moment and third place in the standings, 49 points behind Martin. He says the title is not on his mind but there is still a long way to Valencia.
This is the first time you win Sprint and race in the same weekend.
"I am really happy with the result of this weekend, " says Enea , "I reflected during the summer break to understand where I could have improved, controlling the race pace I was always competitive. Unfortunately I was often unable to express myself in the fast lap in qualifying, but this weekend everything went right. Yesterday I took my first win in the Sprint and today I was able to repeat it in the long race. To win and to do it here at Silverstone in conjunction with MotoGP's 75th anniversary celebration makes me really happy."
When did you realize you could win?
"In the last five laps. Today Jorge was very strong and I couldn't take a meter from him, I told myself I would take second even though Pecco was also very close anyway. "I always hoped" - Bagnaia echoed him - "however, at the end when I saw that I was eating tenths off him, I tried and gave everything."
You've always been a specialist in race management, but now you've also conquered the short distances, will we see you this competitive more often in this second half of the season?
"I hope so, the atmosphere this weekend was different right from the start, I had very good feelings about the bike from Friday and I didn't have to modify the bike too much. Everything was perfect, from qualifying to racing. Everything will depend on how and if we are able to deal with the problems that come our way. I am confident, we are working well and the team now knows me and knows what I need."
You are now 49 points behind championship leader Martin, third in the championship ahead of Marc Marquez. Can you fight for the title?
"I don't think I'm in contention for the title, Pecco and Jorge have shown more consistency in every race and are always at the top of their form. Often I don't find the right feeling right away or I find myself starting behind, to be able to fight for a title you need to improve in this sense. So at the moment I look to the future race by race, the first goal is to find more consistency in qualifying. For sure though this weekend is a very good starting point, I would like to continue in this way in the second half of the season and if things continue like this we will see what happens."
Does this win lift you up after last season's difficult season? Do you feel that you have turned over a new leaf?
"I have turned over a new leaf since the beginning of the year, physically I was better, and now I feel I am in even better shape. I feel one with the bike, a feeling that was not always easy to feel. Last year I'm cancelling it, it was a disaster. The victory in Malaysia came it is true, but without any particular reason."
With so many riders struggling with the rear tire, how were you able to manage the wear and maintain this pace?
"Since yesterday I had been checking the pace and wear and it was not very high despite being a Sprint. Today I didn't get off to a great start and found myself fourth after the first few laps. I pushed harder than I expected, but in the end I had no problems. I noticed that Pecco and Jorge also had some vibration problems, especially on the left side, but it's hard to explain, it's one of my talents."
On the last lap your bike had a very strong jolt, were you celebrating?
"I would say definitely not! - joked the Rimini native - I was pushing hard because I hadn't looked at the board and didn't know how close Jorge was. At Turn 4 I saw that I had a bit of a margin but I kept pushing, the tire was at the limit by then though."
At the end of the year you and Ducati will go their separate ways. A shame more for you or for Ducati?
"Eh... - reflected the Italian with a smile - we'll see. I think I still don't understand Ducati's choice to let me and Jorge leave, but it's a decision I respect. I think the KTM will be a good bike for me, but I can't say anything more without having tried it yet."
Since you learned that you were leaving Ducati at the end of the year, you've been really competitive. That was what you needed, is there a correlation between the two? Do you think Ducati made a mistake?
"Last year was not easy, I almost felt old (because of the injury, ed.), I missed many races, sure I won in Malaysia but my fitness was never at its best. This year started better and the first approach with the GP24 and race after race the feelings are improving. In the first part of the season I didn't have confidence in corner entry, but now it's back. So I have a good chance to do well this season, in the next one I won't be on a Ducati but I think I can still do well."
What has changed in qualifying compared to the past?
"To be honest nothing, I did the fastest lap with the first tire. In the past every time I missed the chance to make a good lap with the first one, and often with the second one I encountered traffic or yellow flags. This time, however, I was able to be fast right from the start, but I didn't change anything."
The choice of tire also turned out to be the right one.
"As Pecco also pointed out, the front was very soft and we had to adapt. The hard compound would have helped but with these temperatures it was an even bigger risk, in the end it went well."
Today you took to the track with a replica helmet dedicated to Mike Hailwood, a rider who made Ducati history back in 1978.
"I liked the design, this is Silverstone and Hailwood was a British rider. Also, the colors went well with our livery."
