Due to injury, Enea Bastianini still has a lot of catching up to do, especially in terms of how he feels about this year’s Ducati, which robs him of his greatest strength
In Spielberg, Enea Bastianini took his first MotoGP pole a year ago. In the race itself he thought he had a chance of winning, but retired early due to a damaged rim. This weekend, neither pole nor victory looks within reach for the Ducati rider.
Although the Italian emphasises in advance: “This track is one of my favourite tracks. Last year, Saturday was really good here. On Sunday, unfortunately, it didn’t go so well. But this year the situation is a bit different. I’m coming from a difficult situation due to my injury.”
At the season opener in Portimao in mid-March, he broke his right shoulder blade in a collision with brand colleague Luca Marini and was out for a long time. His training deficit on this year’s Desmosedici is correspondingly large.
“We have to continue to adapt and work on being competitive. But I am motivated, I know my potential and the potential of the team. Now we have to bring everything together,” says the Italian, explaining, “I just don’t really feel comfortable on the bike at the moment.”
“But I have also missed many races. That’s why the other riders have an advantage over me. We have to try to catch up as soon as possible. “
No more physical limitations
“Silverstone was my first race where I was in good shape physically. Now I also have to work on myself and improve my riding style to adapt to the bike.” Bastianini does not fear that the shoulder could cause him problems during the hard braking points in Spielberg.
“The shoulder is okay, not perfect, but good enough to ride fast. Only sometimes, if I overdo it in the gym, I don’t feel so good the next day. But on the bike it’s not a problem,” he assures.
When asked about his problems with the GP23, the Italian reveals, “I’m usually very good on the brakes at corner entry, but this year it’s not the case. The engine is a bit different from last year and we still have to understand how to set up the bike better. “
Bastianini is looking for the perfect compromise
“We are working on that, but we haven’t really found a solution yet. Let’s see if it wins us here, because of course I want to be as fast at the corner entrance as last year, but at the moment it’s still the biggest weak point.”
Bastianini blames this mainly on the new engine. We remember: last year he rode the GP21. He has virtually skipped the development stage of the GP22.
“The engine is different. And the engine brake doesn’t suit my riding style,” he explains. “So we need to understand what we need to change. After the race at Silverstone, we took a close look at the data and also discovered something. But before I talk about it, I want to try the bike first.”
Just this much: “It has to do with the electronics, but also with the set-up. We have to find the perfect compromise.” Is he also learning things from Bagnaia? “The set-up is already very similar, the engine brake a bit different – also compared to other Ducati riders. But you can’t just copy. “
