IS THIS MOTOGP’S NEXT BIG THING?
Pecco Bagnia is Rossi’s protégé and will be on a Ducati in MotoGP in 2019
Team Sky rider Pecco Bagnia has had a dream start to the 2018 Moto2 season, taking a series of wins and the championship lead as well as securing his future by putting pen to paper on a Pramac Ducati deal in the premier class for next season. With three wins so far in 2018 and a lead over KTM rider Miguel Olivera of 13 points going into this weekend’s Catalan Grand Prix, MCN sat down with the 21-year-old to talk about this year and the next…
Q You’ve made an incredible start to the season. What’s changed?
A Nothing much, but we’re learning a lot and improving all the things we struggled with last year. In every race except Argentina we’ve been fast, in front and been able to finish well even when things have been difficult. The experience of last year and my feeling with the team and the suspension has made a big difference. We switched from WP to Öhlins this year as well, and that seems to work better with the Kalex chassis, which has improved my feeling with the bike a lot.
Q How do you approach the rest of the season?
A We just have to continue in the direction we’ve started in and try not to put ourselves under too much pressure. We need to work session-by-session and race-by-race instead of thinking four races ahead. I speak to Uccio or Valentino a lot and I’ve learned that if you stay relaxed you can see everything more clearly and if you’re not aggressive or angry you can live a more relaxed life. That is a better way to be.
Q Are you training any different to prepare for 2019?
A I think that largely it will be the same. Sure, I’ll need to put on more muscle because a MotoGP bike is more aggressive, but it won’t be too much. I’ve already started to ride the Moto2 bike differently from last year as well, in a more similar way to a MotoGP bike but in a way that works for this year, too. I’m still learning as well, but when I watch races from last year I see Franco (Morbidelli) was riding like I am now, which is a nice relief.
Q Do you have an advantage because you’ve already tested a MotoGP bike?
A I don’t think it will be a big advantage because it was only nine laps at Valencia. But just to ride it was incredible and I almost can’t believe I’m going to get to ride one all season! But for me, a MotoGP bike will be very different from anything else, and every person has to learn about it for themselves. It’s starting again from zero. For now I just want to concentrate on Moto2 without setting any targets for next year. I just want to be fast.