Francesco Bagnaia was delighted to witness his strategy in the MotoGP Catalan Grand Prix pay off, becoming the first official Ducati winner in Barcelona since 2018.
During the early laps, Jorge Martin and Pedro Acosta managed to pull away from the Italian rider, but Acosta eventually suffered a crash, allowing Bagnaia to hunt down and overtake Martin from the Pramac team.
Bagnaia revealed after the race that he had adopted a cautious approach in the early stages to preserve his tires and make a strong push in the final moments. He expressed satisfaction that his game plan had worked.
“I decided to keep a consistent pace and not push too hard at the beginning, like Martin and Pedro, and it turned out to be the right choice,” Bagnaia told Autosport. “Because in the final laps, I was able to pick up the pace and control the race. So I’m really happy, very happy.”
“When they passed me, I tried to push a bit harder for a lap. But I realized that the front tires were deteriorating quickly and I couldn’t be too aggressive with the rear tires. It was a disaster,” Bagnaia explained. “So I decided to be more cautious and after 10 laps, I could see that my strategy was working. I was a bit worried at the beginning, but it paid off. And as soon as I caught up to Jorge, it was crucial to overtake him to relieve the pressure up front.”
With just five laps to go, Bagnaia executed a skillful maneuver, diving inside Martin at the dangerous turn 5, where several riders had crashed throughout the weekend.
When asked about his overtake on Martin, Bagnaia stated: “I chose to do it at turn five, in part because of what happened yesterday. I crashed there in a very unusual situation. So I decided to dispel any doubts. Yes, and it worked.”
He added: “I lost 12 points in a very… pfff! I went slower and still fell, so that’s something I will never accept. And today, I did it again, but much, much slower because the difference was bigger. I decided to approach it very cautiously, and it paid off. But turn five is very, very tricky. We witnessed many falls throughout the weekend, so it was crucial for me to finish the race”.
