Bagnaia, who has his best chance yet to win his maiden MotoGP title after closing within two points of Quartararo following his podium finish at the Thai MotoGP, was a guest on the ‘Stasera c’e Cattelan’ podcast when he spoke about it all. related to competing with his mentor Rossi and current rival Quartararo.
Rossi retired at the end of the 2021 season after two difficult seasons in which he only managed one podium finish, while the MotoGP Legend also failed to win a race dating back to Assen 2017.
Still, Rossi remains the greatest of all time in Bagnaia’s eyes, with the Ducati rider saying: “He was so much bigger than everyone else that he’s out of the competition.”
“No one will ever be like him. So from that perspective there is less pressure. But it is also true that no Italian has won the MotoGP title since 2009. Precisely because there are social networks, this feels much more.”
Staying on the topic of social media, Bagnaia believes she has learned to avoid the negativity that can come with social media platforms, while also explaining what era would have suited her best from this point of view.
Bagnaia continued: “In the late 1990s or early 2000s, because there was no social media, which certainly made everything easier.”
“I’ve taken a big step in that direction, I don’t look at the comments and stuff anymore. Because I don’t have to prove to them that I’m fast, but to myself and to the people I work with”. me.”
Bagnaia praises Quartararo on his goal of becoming the first Italian MotoGP champion since Rossi
As Bagnaia alluded to, there hasn’t been an Italian MotoGP champion since Rossi won in 2009.
Given that the world championship is well represented by Italians every year, it certainly comes as a surprise, however all that could change this season with Bagnaia.
Before Assen, Bagnaia’s title conquest seemed almost impossible, but since winning the Dutch MotoGP he has cut a 91-point deficit to just 2 in the standings.
Bagnaia and Quartararo have somehow yet to have a duel for the win in their main class races, but if that happens, the respect between the two is likely to make it a fair fight.
Speaking about his respect for Quartararo and what the Frenchman has been achieving on an M1 bike that is considered ‘lower’, Bagnaia added: “There is a huge respect, which is the most important thing. We have really known each other for many years. I Lo I met at the presentation of my team in Italy, which was deployed in both Spain and Italy. From then on, we almost always shot together”.
Bagnaia, who has six wins compared to Quartararo’s three this season, continued: “He has been very consistent this year. He has had more ups and downs in recent years: he was also the world championship leader in 2020, but then he lost.
“Last year he managed to win the title. This year he has managed to be very consistent, although I think his bike is inferior to ours. So he did very well.”