Among the protagonists of the Ducati presentation in Madonna di Campiglio there could obviously not be missing Davide Tardozzi, the soul of the Borgo Panigale team on the track and this season grappling with a problem that virtually every other manager in the paddock would like to have, namely being able to manage two talents like Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez in the same box. We exchanged a few words with Davide taking advantage of his kindness also to talk about the problems of KTM, that is, the team that until last season was one of the toughest opponents to beat on the track.
Davide, I see you cheerful these days and you said earlier in the conference that managing two champions in the team all in all is easy. Can you explain that?
"I think when you have two guys who are so intelligent, as well as fast riders, it is much easier to manage them. Pecco, I think I know him pretty well, Marc, I am getting to know him day by day, but he has already shown that he understands what the spirit of Ducati is, how to collaborate with us and Pecco. I see them talking a lot, but at breakfast, rather than while walking to a place to do an event, I see that they exchange a lot of opinions, and it's a sign of intelligence and collaboration, so that leaves me absolutely calm."
Isn't this the calm before the storm?
"No, the storm must be managed, anything can happen in life, however, I believe that it will be the track that will say what is the result of one or the other. As far as Ducati is concerned we will support both riders in the best possible way, if a rider wants to take a different direction we are able to handle it. Gigi and his guys and engineers know exactly what to do, they have already talked a lot with both riders for the near future. It's important to make the right decisions in these five days of winter testing, especially for the engine that will also be defined for 2026, so we are very careful. They are very careful engineers, especially in front of these evaluations."
Was it so obvious that the two, as you said, would start to work together so well? Pecco is sometimes seen as a reflection of Valentino....
"Pecco is Pecco, he is not Valentino who is a great champion, an idol, and he has been for me as well. But Pecco has his own ideas, I believe that if he doesn't agree with Valentino he tells him, Pecco has his own personality, Pecco is an important champion and in my opinion he will become even more so, so I don't think he is a copy of someone or he is managed by someone."
Tardozzi: "Marc I was amazed by Marc's humility, he doesn't have a double face."
Was there anything that amazed you about Marquez's approach?
"His humility, I don't think he has a double face when he shows humility and that he says, as he also said in the press conference, that he has to see, evaluate, learn the Ducati working method, that Pecco clearly has more experience in this and has to carbon copy certain situations. So I want to say the humility of a champion, I think right now he is doing not well, but more so."
You have two champions and the best bike. We're in for a one-two punch this year.
"We start aiming to finish first or second, however, we have a total respect for those who have the number one attached to the fairing, we have a total respect for those who, like last year, proved to be a very strong rider and with a bike that is still competitive, such as Acosta, for example. And then the line-ups of both Aprilia and KTM are prestigious, so the riders of the competing manufacturers are very strong. Then clearly we think we have made the best choice."
How concerned are you also, sportingly speaking, about KTM's problems?
"First of all, very sorry for the workers who are left at home in the first place, after that we hope that KTM will be able to race and will also be able to race properly, that is, supported by the right budgets. Then I don't want to say any more because I don't know the situation, but we are sincerely sorry that KTM has these problems because it is right to have opponents and to have them in the best possible way for their performance."