English
Italiano
It was a serious, red-pencil...mistake, that of the pairing of Bagnaia-Marquez in Portimao. It should not have happened, and while it is understandable that both wanted to show the world who started with the hardest suspension, on the other hand the outcome of the confrontation was negative for both. Albeit for slightly different reasons.
Marquez, in fact, was once again singled out as a troublemaker, when MotoGP is full of similar incidents, even without Marc being involved. And we are not here to give you a summary. Bagnaia, on the other hand, with a third title in his sights and an uncomfortable and hungry brand mate like Jorge Martin cannot afford any setbacks, unlike the eight-time world champion whose only goal is to return to an official bike next year. Ducati, KTM, Honda: who knows?
The two, after the collision, did not speak to each other, but Marquez revealed that he had spoken to Tardozzi - and it figures that Davide would never be one to pass up this opportunity! - and his declaration "Ducati has the telemetry, so it will be easy to understand cause and responsibility" is definitely heavy.
The fact that neither took responsibility for the clash, in fact, is normal, but that one of the two entrusted the resolution of the doubt to the numbers suggests that these...do not lie. And in fact Marquez added that he has seen both the telemetry, since Ducati shares it.
Now the telemetry issue, as 2015 sadly teaches us, is always a double-edged sword. Even Max Biaggi noticed it in 2005, when with telemetry in hand showing that his Honda engine was running less than Sete Gibernau's, he was unable to get blood out of a stone, indeed he was dumped at the end of the year.
The fact remains that while Marquez and Bagnaia are aiming for two different goals at the end of 2024, the GP of Portugal should be a warning to both of them: if in fact Jorge Martin continues to hammer away like he did last Sunday in Portimao, then it will be better for Pecco and Marc to mount softer suspension instead of competing to see who has the stiffer set-up.
The pair that is not yet a pair, in Portimao in fact scored zero points against the 25 of Martin, who at the moment now has an 18-point lead over second-placed Brad Binder, while Bagnaia and Marquez are already behind, 23 and 33 points respectively.
For goodness sake, with only two races done and dusted, as they say in the U.S., it's too early for the numbers to speak, but points are like money: they don't make you happy, but it's always better to have them than not.
There's more, of course. Whichever way you look at Marc Marquez's presence on a Ducati, it is always better to have him as a friend than as an enemy. Although it is true that the difference between the GP23 and the GP24 is likely to increase over the course of the year.
Unless, of course, Ducati is prepared to make happen what happened only once, in 2001, that is, an official satellite team being world champion. But then who's going to tell the sponsors?
