The Ducati Lenovo Team has celebrated in the best possible way the Brembo Italian Grand Prix at the Mugello International Circuit by taking the race win with Francesco Bagnaia and the second place with Enea Bastianini. Both riders, ahead of the home crowd, put together scintillating performances aboard their respective Desmosedici GP sporting a special livery dedicated to Italy’s national team.
Bagnaia’s start from fifth place on the grid was a perfect one, with the reigning world champion who was already in the lead after the first two corners. Pecco managed the race in the best possible way as he rewrote the race lap record twice and pulled away from competition in the final two laps, crossing the finish line eight tenths ahead of his teammate. Bagnaia scored full points (37) for the first time since last year’s Austrian Grand Prix and made it three consecutive wins at Mugello on Sunday (he is the first rider able to do so at the Italian venue since 2012).
Bastianini also had an excellent start to the encounter and stayed in contention for a podium finish throughout the whole race. With three laps left, Enea managed to move past Marc Márquez for third, before giving chase to Jorge Martín. Despite the little time left, the Ducati rider #23 managed to quickly bridge the gap to the opponent, ultimately overtaking him at the last corner and storming his way to second place at the chequered flag.
With the seventh Grand Prix of the season in the books, Bagnaia is now 18 points behind leader Martín in second place, with Bastianini fourth and 57 points shy of the top. The Ducati Lenovo Team leads the team standings with 267 points, with Ducati on top of the manufacturers’ standings (241 points).
After tomorrow’s official test here at Mugello, the riders of Ducati Lenovo Team will be back in action – following a three-week break – at Assen’s TT Circuit, for the eighth event of the season (June 28-30).
Francesco Bagnaia (#1 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 1st
“It was an incredible race. It wasn’t easy as I was fifth on the grid, but the strategy of going for the outside line worked out perfectly, also due to Maverick (Viñales) running a little wide. I started dictating the pace from the get-go, but it was hard to manage the rear-end of the bike as the bike was moving a lot at the front, meaning I could only be effective for a couple of laps each time. In the end we were able to get the win in what was a fantastic weekend, with an incredible atmosphere coming from the crowd I love. To witness the sea of people below the podium was crazy. I’m also happy for Enea and for the great race he had. Thank you Mugello, you all were fantastic.”
Enea Bastianini (#23 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 2nd
“This podium finish in front of our home crowd was incredible. Something hadn’t been working right in recent times, but we fixed the issues and today, we really pushed to the limit. I’m very happy: I had a little bit of a slip in terms of form in the middle of the race, but after being overtaken by Marc (Márquez) I realised the time had come to start pushing. During the final lap I saw that Jorge (Martín) was getting closer and closer and there I understood that second place was really possible. I managed to do so at the final corner and I’m very happy. I’d like to dedicate this win to my dog, who passed away last week. In a manner of speaking, she was my baby!”
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“We witnessed an incredible race by both riders. Pecco was simply perfect in what from outside may have looked like a simple race, but I guarantee you that given the pace and the opponents, it was anything but. It was important for him to have a weekend with no setbacks and that’s what happened; he showed once again why he’s a two-time reigning world champion. Enea gave us goosebumps on the last lap and when he crossed the line in second place, the reaction in the box was indescribable. Great job to both, they’re great champions and they deserve all the love by the home crowd.”
