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It's not often that we see Bagnaia in second to last place in the standings, but that's what happened this morning on Aragon. He seemed like a different rider on the track during the FP1 but, as always, there's an explanation for everything. "There's something I can't talk about that didn't work at all," the world champion said. Trying to get any other detail from him was pointless. His only other comment on the mishap of that part was that it "had given lots of problems before, but it's not about the bike."
The fact remains that it greatly complicated Pecco's life.
"I completely missed the session. I couldn't try anything," he continued. "So we had to redo the whole program for the afternoon, even if we didn't have much time to complete the work. Once we understood the direction to go, we took those huge steps forward that we should've taken in the morning. Unfortunately, these things happen from time to time. It was unfortunate that it happened onsuch a special track and with a new asphalt, where getting off on the right foot would've been crucial, especially considering the improvements in the afternoon."
But he still saved the day with the 6th quickest time in pre-qualifying, which wasn't particularly exciting, but it allowed him to get into the Q2.
"In the end, I'm happy with the last lap and the worn medium tire. I got a good time," Bagnaia noted. "Instead, when I mounted the soft on the rear, I didn't expect that much grip, so we made another small change to the bike for the last exit, which allowed me to improve again. Without the yellow flag, I would've been close to the top three. In any case, it's okay. Overall, the day was positive. I'm in the top ten. Tomorrow we'll know what direction to take, and we'll definitely take a big step forward."
He'll need it, in order to catch up with Marquez. Of course, many people are wondering if the GP23 has an advantage at the MotorLand.
"The difference everyone talks about between the two bikes isn't there. They're very similar, like I keep saying. However, here it's nore Marc who makes all the difference," the rider from Piedmont answered, "This track is particularly good for him, and he probably started with a set-up with which he was particularly comfortable. In fact, he was very fast already in the first session. It's a question of sensations."
The sensations that Pecco needs to find.
"I can get closer tomorrow, but Marc is fast. He makes all the difference in the two middle sectors of the track, while I'm still missing something," he reflected. "Right now, Marquez is the man to beat, both on the time attack and for the race-pace, but I think I can close the gap."
Also because the track will improve.
"The new asphalt gives really strange sensations, because there's a lot of grip in acceleration, but it's a disaster up in front," Pecco explained. "You can't brake, you can't enter the corner in a certain way, you lose a lot of time. But, when you figure out how to do it, you take advantage of the grip on the rear. It's kind of the opposite of what usually happens."
That said, his predictions for tomorrow are optimistic.
"I think we'll still improve a lot. We'll go under 1 minute and forty-five seconds in qualifying. The track will definitely improve, and the temperatures will be lower. We'll just have to see if the asphalt will let out oil or moisture. We'll see. Even in the other classes, they lowered the times by half a second at a time. It's a matter of cleaning the asphalt," he concluded.
