MotoGP – Gran Premio Gryfyn di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini
Qualification:
Jack Miller put his Ducati in pole position, helping the red squad once again before he leaves for KTM. Francesco Bagnaia was P2 and Enea Bastianini P3. Championship leader Fabio Quartararo was P8, once again swamped by the Italian bikes all around him as he tries to extract the most from his Yamaha.
The Race:
The three-front row Ducatis screamed away from the line, with Miller in the lead followed by Bastianini and Bagania. Turn one and three riders got it all wrong, with Zarco, Pirro and Pol Espargaro left stranded in the kitty litter, none of them able to re-start. Lap one was all about the Ducati riders, with Fabio Quartararo in P8, not where he needed to be, in the Ducati swamp. As they hit lap two, Jack Miller hit the deck and ended his very brief stint at the front, but he was able to re-start. This left Enea Bastianini in P1 with Bagnaia P2 and Maverick Vinales P3.
With twenty five laps to go, Pecco Bagnaia took the lead, taking over from 2023 teammate Enea Bastianini, no team orders there. Vinales was still P3, looking quick and in total control of his agile Aprilia.
This is a short report because it’s not possible to write about nothing, and this race was uneventful for the most part. For ten laps it was Bagnaia in the lead with Vinales P2 and Bastianini P3, until lap twenty, when Enea finally overtook Maverick for the P2. With six laps to go Enea did manage to take the fight to Pecco, but it wasn’t quite close enough to displace the factory rider, but not for want or trying, he really did push and hard.
Last lap, and although Bastianini was pushing hard, over the line it was Bagnaia who took the win, by only 300ths of a second from Enea in P2 and Maverick Vinales in P3. The end of the race was exciting and spiced up an otherwise lacklustre race.
To put it into perspective, at the speeds these bikes cross the line, 300ths of a second is approximately the length of a Factory Ducati.
The Result:
P1, Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Lenovo Team. P2, Enea Bastianini, Gresini Racing MotoGP. P3, Maverick Vinales, Aprilia Racing
This race saw the retirement of Andrea Dovizioso after a brilliant career, he decided to pack it in, not being able to make the Yamaha do what Fabio does.
Author: Martin Northern
Founder of Bike Directory
