Yesterday he was on the podium in the Sprint (thanks to Acosta’s penalty), today he finished sixth in the Grand Prix. In Austin, Bastianini felt like the rider he is again, riding the way he knows how. In Texas, Bastianini was Bastianini once again and “not just another rider.” In fact, the 20 laps of the #23 KTM did anything but go unnoticed. Starting 12th, he first experienced a rear-end slide in the early laps, followed by the airbag deploying after contact with Mir. Once the airbag deflated, Enea climbed up the standings lap after lap, until the fourteenth lap, when a close battle with Marc Marquez sparked a flurry of overtakes and counter-overtakes.
Bastianini fought hard; to counter Marquez’s comeback, he pulled off Marquez-style passes, but in the end he had to yield to the nine-time World Champion—and the Desmosedici’s straight-line speed—though he made him sweat for the position right up to the final lap. Here’s another sign of Bastianini’s competitiveness here in America: his final-lap time of 2:04.4, which is completely in line with what Marco Bezzecchi showed in the second half of the race.
“It was a great result, the best one, I think, since the Catalan GP. I’m very happy,” Enea stated. “The start of the race was really tough: I lost the rear at Turn 3 and dropped a few positions. Then, after contact with Joan, the airbag deployed, and for a lap it was very difficult to ride. After that, though, I tried to find my rhythm again and, lap after lap, I tried to close the gap to the riders in front of me. In the end, I managed to survive the battle with Marc, and it was really tough. He was pushing really hard, especially in the last three laps. Staying close to him wasn’t easy at all. To be honest, I would like to have been a bit closer coming out of Turn 11 to try and attack him at Turn 12, but we were lacking a bit in acceleration. Otherwise, we were competitive, especially under braking, and I can be satisfied with the weekend. I made just one mistake in qualifying, and that penalized me a bit in the race. In any case, getting back to fighting for the top positions is a positive thing.”
Thailand was really tough. And now, just two races later, you are fighting for the top 5. Is the improvement due to the different tyre compound brought by Michelin, or is there more to it?
“That’s a good question for me, too. Right now I don’t know, because so far we’ve only done this race and we have to see how it goes in the future, especially in Europe. Usually in Europe it’s more complicated, because the gaps tend to be even smaller. But here, from the start, it was a whole different world. We also tried a few different solutions on the bike, but I don’t think that’s the only reason. I believe there are multiple factors: here, our bike performed well in many respects. But, to be honest, it’s very difficult for me to explain exactly why it turned out this way. What I can say is that I rode well here. On this track, I’m back to being Bastianini, not just another rider.”
Last year you made the podium in Barcelona and then you struggled again.
“I think that since Barcelona 2025, after that race, I’ve lost something again in terms of how the bike feels. This is the first time since then that I’ve been able to ride with this mindset and this confidence.”
When the airbag deployed, did it deflate on its own afterward?
“Yes, it deflated, but it doesn’t happen immediately; you have to wait a bit. I did maybe half a lap in those conditions, but that’s normal. I was really clumsy!”
How are things going with Gunther Steiner?
“Very well; he has a great personality. I have to say that there’s always a calm atmosphere in the pit, whether things are going well or not so well, and that’s essential,” concluded the rider from Rimini.