The Italian came from 91 points overall to take his crown from Fabio Quartararo. Ducati reigns again 15 years later
Italy returns to reignThe transalpine country had since 2009 -year of the last title of valentino rossi– without being able to win in the maximum category of the two wheels. A very long journey through a desert that even made the mythical ‘Doctor’ faint, who retired last winter.
rossinevertheless, can sketch a knowing smile because his effort to leave a legacy in the motor world is already bearing fruit. One of his youth squad, Pecco Bagnaia, has happened to him for the pride of his academy, the VR46 Riders Academy, as world champion bringing to Italy a title that will hardly be forgotten.
The circumstances were very difficult for Bagnaia, who came to be losing in the general by up to 91 points difference with Fabio Quartararo. The man from Turin, however, hit rock bottom in the summer after suffering a traffic accident in Ibiza, tripling his blood alcohol level.
That warning made him focus and win a historic World Cup for Ducati, which wins again 15 years after it did Casey Stoner. By the way, Bagnaia broke the Australian’s record for consecutive wins achieving four of his own harvest making his maximum rival tremble.
The Ducati man kept his nerves on edge in the last race finishing ninth and not risking the slightest. Quartararo needed that he was fourteenth or worse or that he crashed with the French driver winning the race. Finally he could only be fourth at a party for Alex Rins.
Suzuki goes big
The Suzuki rider paid tribute to the Japanese brand in his last MotoGP race with a new victory against great rivals. We will see if the Japanese reciprocate by giving him the mount that he has led in this race after asking to keep one for free after adding another win two races earlier in Australia.
The one who is not going to give any motorcycle is a Marc Márquez who fell when he was fighting for the victory. The Honda rider miscalculated his options and could not avoid being left without a single win in a World Championship for the first time since 2009. We did not count 2020 because he did not race the entire season due to injury.
This being the case, the 2023 that we face could not be more beautiful. We have the current champion Bagnaia as a wheel to followto his new teammate Enea Bastianini -what a season he has had with the satellite bike- as an alternative, to Quartararo hoping that Yamaha will give him what he asks for and the legend of Márquez trying to get back to where he left off in 2019. There can be no better incentives for the future.