"The luck was having had the Motegi race that helped me so much, at least all the doubts that people had are gone, it also gave me a hand mentally for this weekend. I don't have to prove anything to anyone anymore, I did that a week ago, but it's very frustrating."
I read and reread this sentence. I dwelt on it for a long time trying to interpret it, but I couldn't. If there is any hidden meaning, I didn't catch it. But who is going to tell Francesco Bagnaia that that's not the way it works?
It would be nice if, in life as in sports, one could rely completely on past value, or on a last convincing performance. It simply does not work that way, however. Judging people, and even sportsmen of course, is a bit more complex.
Certainly what one has done in the past matters, God forbid, but it must also be weighed with the scales of reliability and with the repeatability of actions/performances. This is the case in business as well, and we would hate it not to be.
In the case of the Indonesian GP, there is no doubt that it was a difficult race for the Ducatis, but Pecco's last position does not justify itself and is not enough to accept the declaration, "I no longer have to prove anything to anyone."
Obviously, the comparison cannot and should not be only with his teammate, Marc Marquez, who although also struggling, started in front of him, and after suffering a long lap penalty in which he lost about two and a half seconds, he found himself dropping from 7th to 13th, but in the end he recovered up to the starting position one overtake after another. And helost less than 10 seconds, not 30.
Incidentally: for a sportsman to surpass himself is the categorical imperative, and the first opponent is always himself. Success is success, but it is knowing how to repeat it, over time, over the years, that makes all the difference.
Now Pecco is in his 7th year with Ducati and in his palmares there is a 15th place in 2019, a 16th the following year, then he finished 2nd in 2021 in the year of Quartararo's title winning five races. That season Bagnaia won 4 GPs, Marquez with Honda 3 and Miller with the same Ducati as Pecco, 2.
His first title Bagnaia won in 2022 with a comeback over Quartararo in technical crisis finishing with a 17-point lead, repeating the success in 2023 over his Pramac team brand mate, Jorge Martin who, you will remember fought for the title until Valencia and then hit Marquez without finishing the last battle. 2024, with the title lost to Martin despite 11 wins is recent history.
So, what is it that Pecco Bagnaia does NOT have to prove?
Can it be said that Pecco has dominated in recent years? No. Instead, it can be said that we are dealing with a very fast rider who is certainly capable of winning. A champion? For sure. An unstoppable champion? We have our doubts, but that doesn't mean we don't esteem him. He is one of the best, that is beyond doubt.
He is definitely not a die-hard, though. When he falls the first thing he does is not throw himself on the bike to restart and all too often he puts the blame on the stars, Michelin or his box. A box, moreover, that has always assisted him. They are certainly not shirkers.
This year, also, Ducati has rallied around him, and not only after his much-deserved victory at Motegi. We have never heard a negative word about his performance from either Gigi Dall'Igna or Tardozzi, let alone Marc Marquez.
A bad season is par for the course: remember Jorge Lorenzo's 2017? After every Grand Prix he was always under Dovizioso's podium applauding him, and even if he wasn't sincere, he was still on the outside squaring off with the entire team, taking responsibility. Francesco Bagnaia never did that. But it is true that Jorge is an introvert who struggled with his self to open up, while Pecco is a reserved, polite, but certainly not empathetic guy.
While it is true that you all win and lose together, Pecco, however, cannot afford to say "someone should give me an explanation." Unless he imagines himself to be the victim of some conspiracy or gross incompetence.
Of course, Ducati has certainly made some mistakes, and some others Bagnaia has also made because it is incomprehensible that he is not at that point with this GP25, especially after repeating ad nauseam in the winter tests that his sensations and those of Marquez coincided.
So while it may be true that Marc is also capable of riding a tractor, it was even more his responsibility not to diverge from the impressions given by his teammate who, let us remember, came from the GP23 which, in any case, is two generations away from the GP25.
A renowned surgeon is such not because his last operation was successful, but because his patients trust him knowing that he will make the best use of his talent.
Beware, before you judge this negative scrutiny: these are the facts. At least those that have come to light during this championship. If then there were others, hidden, that justify the constant accusations and requests and of Francesco Bagnaia for explanations from Ducati, well, then please vent your feelings by bringing them to light. He owes it, of course, not to us, but to his fans who because of this behavior on social media are crying out that it's all a big 'plot'.