MotoGP Misano: Fabio Quartararo out to benefit from Francesco Bagnaia's penalty, hopes Marc Marquez can fight ‘red bikes’
Bagnaia, who arrives home on the back of a three-race wi🌊n streak💙, will be forced to start Sunday’s race three places below his qualifying position, as punishment for slowing down in the middle of the track during FP1.
The Italianဣ had mistakenly thought the session was over, forcing Alex Marquez and Enea Basti🐼anini to take evasive action.
Bagnaia admitted his error and ‘totally agreed’ with the penal𝓀🉐ty handed down by the FIM Stewards.
With memories still fresh of the controversi🐓al long lap penalty handed to Quartararo for an accident with Aleix Espargaro at Assen, the Frenchman said of Bagnaia's three-place penalty:
“We were joking with my friends that if it happened to me, I’d have [been given]💛 three years in jail!🥀”
On a more serious note, given Bagnaia and Ducati’s current form, Quartararo knows he must try and take full advanta🥃ge of the grid penalty.
“We have to use it [to our advantage] because, in the end, we need to take the benefit from everything," said Quartararo, who starts the weekend 32 p๊oints clear of Aleix Espargaro and 44 ahead of man-of-the-moment Bagnaia.
"Of course, it’s a shame for him, but weꦫ think for us, so we will need to take the benefit from this and try to make our 🔯best.”
The reigning world champion finished Friday practice in fifth place behind the Du♌catis of Enea Bastianini, Bagnaia, Jack Miller and Johann Zarco.
But Quartararo overcame a similar level of Ducati practice dominance to finish second in Austria and is againꦛ confident in his race pace.
“Today in the pace we were super fast,” he said.
Quartararo: I hope Marc can fight against the red bikes
Quartararo has been the only rider on a Japanese bike able to offer any resistance to Ducati in recent rounds, but that could soon change with the news that 168澳洲5最新开奖结果ౠ:Marc Marquez will make a MotoGP comeback at next week’s Misano test.
If all goes well, the inj𝄹ured eight-time world champion might then make a race ♎return at Aragon.
“I hope he can be fighting with us pretty soon and try to destroy a little bit, the plan of 🍌the red bikes,” Quartararo saꦬid. “But yeah, it’s great that he comes back.
"For sure he has had some positive feedback from his [arm] and shoulder&🍃nbsp;at the [Aragon] test. So now he will come here for two days and then everybody [will have] a clear idea about his potential for the future races.”
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Mar꧋quez’s injury issues.
