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Under the gray skies of Austin, Pecco Bagnaia's red cloud ran free again between the curves of the U.S. track. For Bagnaia, taking his 30th MotoGP victory at CoTA, a milestone he was still lacking in his career, tastes sweet for those who, like him, had to swallow the bitter pill of waiting since the start of the season. The wait for the result that would bring him back to "racing with a smile" as he would later confess to journalists, also thanks to a team that was able to manage his nervousness in these first races.
It's a success that was linked to a mistake by his rival Marc Marquez, without which the Spaniard would almost certainly have followed the script of the recent weeks, as the Lenovo rider clearly admits. A victory, however, perhaps also partly the result of experience, mindful of last season in which Jorge Martin was able to give him the hardest of lessons for a champion: that of knowing how to wait, knowing how to sometimes settle for the result. So that's what Bagnaia did, keeping his head down behind the fairing and cautiously managing the conditions of a mixed track, first getting in front of Alex Marquez's GP24 and then trying to keep up with Marc, but it would be wrong to dismiss it as pure luck, because the Turin-born rider had already shown signs of redemption in those first few frantic laps of the sprint, and the season ahead is still a long one.
"It's an incredible feeling, I'm really happy, it's the first time I win here at CoTA - Pecco began - I know that this success is also due to Marc's crash, today he was faster than anyone else. I was trying to manage his pace as best as I could, and when I saw him crash I kept pushing to keep Alex at a distance, he was still very close at that moment. It wasn't easy, he was gaining a lot in the first sector and we were close in the second sector. I think I gained something because of the braking in sector 12, in the third sector I was gaining something. It was also not easy psychologically, because of the way the season started from testing. In the first two races I had trouble finding the right feeling under braking, and I have to say that this weekend helped me a lot to find what I was looking for. I am really happy about that, as I am happy for my team. It is to their credit that they were able to keep my nervousness at bay and turn it into technical details. Thanks to them and those who support me, I'm back to racing with a smile."
Is this win more important for the championship or for you?
"A win is always important, the team deserved this win, we did our best. It was not expected but we did everything we could. It's a starting point, now we know that working in a certain way we can win, as we also did last year. We simply have to keep working and try to adapt to the conditions that will be in front of us."
What did you think when you saw Marc crash on the kerb at turn 4?
"I saw that he was very aggressive on the kerbs, and to be that competitive you had to cut the kerb a lot at turn 4. Probably the kerb was still a bit wet because normally I would have approached the corner that way as well, but in the warm up I touched it and saw that the grip at that point was not optimal. So when I saw him crash it was not easy to deal with the next corner. Without that crash Marc would have distanced himself even more, because the pace he was showing was fantastic."
You've always been optimistic, how much of that was self-doubt and how much was awareness that you can be close to your rivals?
"I am optimistic but also realistic. When I said that my feelings were improving it was because the situation was clear. In my opinion the overall situation was perceived to be worse than it actually was, because I had three third places and one fourth, while here today it was good. It is clear that I was not at the level of the first two, but it is also clear that the start of this championship was better than the previous ones. I know how much more work I have to do, and how much we can improve. We always do, I focused on various aspects both on the track and at home. Definitely a lesson I learned from last year is that taking unnecessary risks is wrong, if I see there is no chance to win I am content with where I am. It's a strategy that's not very much up my street, I always try to give my best, but in certain situations it's better to be realistic, and in this also in my declarations I've always been transparent."
Irrespective of this result, has your feeling on the GP24.9 improved?
"It's hard to say, last year here with the GP24 I had a lot more difficulty, finished 8th in the sprint and 15th in the race, so I took a step forward on this track and the feeling has improved. The next round in Qatar is a really good track for me so I will try to continue the work we started in Thailand."
Marc's tactic of changing bikes at the start caught everyone off guard.
"The grid was dry, as was the first corner and I noticed that Marc was not yet on his bike. At first I thought I could have done it too but I would have lost too much time. When I saw him running towards the pit though I followed him, usually Marc is more devious in his strategies, but I knew that if we were the only ones doing it a penalty would come. On balance it was the right decision, but after the pit run I was devastated. Fortunately many other riders followed our example, when I saw them running on the screens I knew we would not be penalized, and race management delayed the start. You have to admit, though, that the rules on the matter are not very clear, some riders like Binder and Bastianini and Trackhouse had bet on slicks from the start, so I guess their position on the matter is more clear-cut."
The next round in Qatar may also have the presence of Valentino.
"When Vale comes it's always a pleasure, it's always better to have him close and present rather than texting us."
