The sports director of Ducati discusses how he handled the situation with Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia in Portimao.
Ducati texted Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez to inquire about any unresolved animosity following Portimao.
At the Portuguese MotoGP, Bagnaia’s effort to pass him caused both riders to go into the gravel, resulting in the first accident of the season involving the top Ducati riders.
Even though Gresini’s Marquez placed the blame on factory Ducati rider Bagnaia, the event was still considered a racing incident.
Mauro Grassilli, the sporting director of Ducati, had the task of resolving any possible issue.
At the Circuit of the Americas, he was questioned about his intervention.
Very simple, Grassilli said.
“I messaged everyone of them. Either Tuesday or Monday, I can’t recall.
Just wanted to say, “Hey guys, everything alright?
“Yeah, everything is under control, looking forward to COTA,” was how Pecco and Marc responded to me.
“Therefore, very, very positive.”
Marquez and Bagnaia did not receive a point from the second grand prix of the season due to their accident at Portimao.
The fight at the moment was for P5.
After Marquez lost the lead in the COTA round and Bagnaia could only finish fifth, those lost points appear even more dire.
After three rounds, Marquez is behind championship leader Jorge Martin by 44 points. Martin leads Bagnaia by thirty points.
The potential conflict between the current MotoGP champion and their highly skilled new hire posed a larger concern for Ducati.
Ducati executives had acknowledged before Marquez was signed last year that his aggressive riding style would inevitably cause problems.
Leave a Reply