MotoGP king Bagnaia: ‘I brake with the forks bottomed out – I love to feel the front tyre’
MotoGP
Pecco Bagnaia – who goes to Valencia this week hoping to retain his MotoGP crown – may look smooth and controlled on his Ducati but he does some radical things to find his speed. He talks mad braking, what he expects from the 2024 Desmosedici and why today’s riders will have shorter careers
Bagnaia gets it all squirrely on the brakes in Thailand. He likes to feel the forks solid at the bottom of their stroke, a feeling that freaks out many riders
Pecco Bagnaia’s arrival in MotoGP with Ducati in 2019 signalled a new direction for the Italian manufacturer that played an important part in the company’s path to championship domination.
Ducati Corse chief Gigi Dall’Igna and his engineers were changing the face of MotoGP by introducing all kinds of new technologies and they needed a new kind of rider who would work with their engineers to mould themselves to these new motorcycles.
When Bagnaia joined the factory team in 2021, Ducati said goodbye to its old-school riders Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci. And step by step it replaced them with super-fast and open-minded youngsters like Bagnaia, Jorge Martin, Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini, whose minds were unsullied by old-school ways.
“I started to brake harder and harder and harder, always entering the corners with more sliding”
Bagnaia looks smooth and controlled when he’s riding his Desmosedici but some of his techniques are quite radical: he brakes with the rear tyre kicked out and the front forks fully bottomed out, which would make most normal mortals whimper with fear.
Oxley: When you first came to MotoGP, your crew chief Cristian Gabbarini told me that your technique was a lot like Jorge Lorenzo’s – very smooth and stable on the bike – would you agree?
Bagnaia: Yes, when I arrived in MotoGP I was very focused on using more corner speed, because I really didn’t have a good feeling in braking. [Which is why Bagnaia lost the front so often in his rookie season].
But what Jorge [who raced factory Ducatis in 2017 and 2018, when Gabbarini was his crew chief] improved the most when he was with Ducati was in braking. In his last year at Ducati he was braking very, very hard, so he was difficult to overtake. I think this was the biggest improvement he made in those two years and it’s also the biggest improvement I’ve made since I came to Ducati.
Dall’Igna’s moulding of Bagnaia into the perfect modern-day Ducati rider has played a huge part in their success together
Ducati
Now we ride in a bit of a different way. Now we brake very, very hard but we still use a lot of corner speed. This is where I try to keep learning and where I try to improve the most.
Downforce aero has become a bigger and bigger deal since you arrived in MotoGP, so how does that change the way you brake?
The downforce has changed the way some guys brake, but the way I brake is similar to before. You just can’t brake 100% from the first moment, you have to be more patient.
The big change, I suppose, has been in how riders use the rear tyre to stop the bike, especially since Michelin’s softer-casing rear tyre arrived in 2020. You and especially Brad Binder seem to be the kings of this – always sideways on the brakes.
I learned it from Moto2 – I prefer to turn the bike before entering the corner than exiting the corner. That way I feel I can control the rear tyre better.
When the new casing arrived in 2020 I felt better and then we started to improve the bike’s engine-braking for my style, which was different to the existing factory riders of that time, who had a different way. [i.e. Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci, who were more wheels in line than sideways into corners.]
So at the same moment we started to work on my riding style and the [engine-braking] electronics and we improved a lot in braking. I started to brake harder and harder and harder, always entering the corners with more sliding. This helped me a lot.
Brad does this even more than me. Not many riders do this but it’s the way I prefer to ride. The hard thing is to keep the rear tyre on the ground.
The epic Thai GP battle between Martin, Bagnaia and Binder
Ducati
How do you combine the front and rear brakes when you attack a corner?
It depends on the grip, it depends on the track and so on. At Barcelona the rear brake is useless [because the track is so slippery] but at Misano the rear brake is super-useful [because the track is very grippy]. So from one circuit to the next it’s different, from one corner to the next it’s different and from one tyre to the next it’s different. It all depends on what I feel.
So you adapt your style all the time: tracks, corners, tyres?
Yes, a lot.
Would you say that this is where you make the difference – you’ve always been strong at decelerating in the shortest distance, shortening the braking zone.
Yes, my strongest points are the braking point and corner entry, this is where I make more of a difference compared to all the other Ducati riders [whose data Bagnaia has access to and vice versa].
Another who’s very good at braking is Luca Marini, but he’s still missing something in corner entry. Jorge Martin’s big strong point is that he’s very good on corner exit, on acceleration.
During your rookie MotoGP season you lost the front a lot…
Yes, a lot!
And even last year and sometimes this year… presumably because if you’re gaining time in this area you must be right on the limit with the front tyre?
Yes, the limit is there.
Much of Bagnaia’s speed comes from his trust in the front tyre – he uses its so hard that he’s had a lot of front-end crashes
Ducati
Has the extra load of the downforce aero narrowed that thin line between the front gripping and losing grip?
For me, it’s more about when they introduced the front-tyre pressure rule, which changed where the limit is. For example, in India [where Bagnaia crashed while battling for second with Martin] my front-tyre temperature and pressure were very, very, very high – too high to ride and I crashed.
But, yes, for sure my riding style needs very good support from the front tyre so I can brake very hard and sometimes it only takes little things for me to lose the front. Like in India, I was sliding the rear on the brakes, then when the rear tyre came back into line with the front I lost the front.
Because that transferred load from the rear tyre and overloaded the front?
Yes and it’s very easy to risk this limit.
Can you explain how Martin is better than you at getting out of corners?
It’s a mix of things: he brakes a bit earlier, so in the corner exit he’s in a better position.
An epic 2023 championship duel was most likely decided on Sunday night when title contender Jorge Martin got a bad rear tyre. Plus: MotoGP should think about why riders are losing their tempers…
By
Mat Oxley
You said you like to turn the bike with the rear going into the corner, so as soon as you get to the apex you can focus all your mind on picking up the bike onto the fatter part of the rear tyre?
Yes, but last year’s bike was better in the pick-up area. With this year’s bike you have to wait a bit more to let the bike turn.
Why’s that?
It’s the balance of the bike. This year’s bike has more rear grip, so you need to wait more.
Why do you have to wait if the bike’s got more rear grip?
Because when you have more rear grip, if you open the gas too early to make the bike turn it pushes the front more, so you go wide and you have to wait some more to really open the throttle.
The GP23 has more grip, which forces Bagnaia to wait a little longer before he can fully get on the gas
Ducati
How can you improve your exit, if Martin has a margin there?
For me, the margin that Jorge has had in the last three races [we’re doing this interview at Mandalika] was more because of my crash in Barcelona. That affected my feeling on the bike a bit. Already by Motegi I was feeling 100% and I was faster than him, but in the sprint race he was very good in the first laps to overtake the KTM guys and push, while I got a bit stuck behind Jack [Miller]. We were prepared for everything for the Sunday race, then the rain came.
Öhlins now has two types of front fork, with a longer-travel version now available [this fork was created because MotoGP bikes are getting longer, so more travel and pitch helps them turn into corners better]. Many riders prefer more travel, but you prefer the older, shorter-travel fork. Why?
I tested the longer-travel fork. It’s good but I love to always bottom the forks and with the longer forks you get more pitch, so more movement from the bike, so the bottom of the forks is further away for me and if I can’t reach the bottom I can’t go fast.
MotoGP has never been more stressful, so how does pit lane’s most experienced crew chief cope with the technical, mental and physical pressures of a fast-changing championship?
By
Mat Oxley
So you like the forks to be fully bottomed?
Yes. I prefer to feel the bike with the forks bottomed because I love to feel the front tyre.
Wow! Because when most people feel the forks bottom out they freak out! But you like them to bottom, so there’s no more suspension, so all you feel is the front tyre.
Yes and then I control it with the brake lever [using brake pressure to control fork compression]. I’m the only rider at Ducati who does this. I’ve always liked it like this, since Moto3, when I used the same fork springs in the wet and the dry. The same in Moto2 and now in MotoGP the springs I use in the wet and dry are very similar.
I suppose this makes sense because this way you get 100% tyre feeling, not 50% suspension and 50% tyre.
Yes, I love to feel the front tyre.
Crossed-up braking can shorten Bagnaia’s braking distances – but he needs the rear tyre on the ground!
Ducati
Your motto is #gofree and it seems like a few years ago MotoGP riders could ride more freely — a rider would go out and use their talent to get the best out of the bike. Now it seems like the rider and crew chief are becoming much closer because the bikes are so complicated and you cannot ride so naturally as in the past…
For me, in the past it was more that it was easier to make the difference, because you used your body and the throttle to control the acceleration to stop the wheelies and to have full power.
Now you have to focus on being perfect at everything, so you have to be very precise in everything to be fast. Also, this year the level has increased a lot, so you just have to focus on pushing. Before it was more controlling and waiting, so it was very different.
Does that also have something to do with the 2020 rear slick? Because this tyre gives you grip all the way to the end whereas in 2019 and before, we saw everyone riding around together for 20 laps and then the race started with five laps to go!
Yes, the races were like that, but sincerely I don’t really know because in 2019 I wasn’t competitive. I think the thing that’s changed the most is the performance we have in terms of sheer speed, because now you have to push like hell from the first lap and the bike must be good for that.
The racing is so tight and tough now, there are so many races, the new weekend format is so stressful and you can’t afford to make any mistakes. Saturdays are even a panic for journalists now!
Yes, Saturdays are very long!
The pressures of working within a big outfit like the Ducati factory team are huge. Bagnaia works hard at keeping his cool
Ducati
How do you deal with all this in your head?
I think it’s a matter of concentration. I work a lot at home to be prepared for everything. And the more you are prepared physically, the more you’re able to manage all the pressure, so for me it’s like that, it’s natural.
But it’s true that when you finish Saturday [practice, qualifying and sprint race] you are very tired.
The season is very long now. For example, normally when we raced at Motegi the championship was almost finished, but this year after Japan there were still six GPs left and 12 races. I wasn’t worried or scared, it’s just different and you have to get used to the situation and in fact I like this situation because I think this can make the difference between riders — if someone is able to maintain their concentration for all the season for sure it’s much better for their results.
But for sure, MotoGP careers will be shorter compared to a few years ago, because it’s more difficult to do this until you are 39 or 40, because it’s so mentally demanding. But we accept it.
You always seem very calm – is this just your natural way of being? Or do you work at home on the mental side of things?
I don’t work at home mentally – I don’t have a mental coach. I just work a lot with my trainer [the VR46 Academy trainer Carlo Casabianca] who is very good at understanding our different mentalities, so he helps us to keep making steps forward in terms of concentration and this is very helpful for me.
This year’s victory at Mugello was extra special with mentor and mate Valentino Rossi in the Ducati garage
Ducati
The whole VR46 thing – training with Marco Bezzecchi, Luca Marini, Valentino Rossi and everyone else – must be a huge mental help.
Working together is always a good thing – we improve together. This way you know perfectly where to improve and you know perfectly that you can always take advantage from working together. This is our mentality and it’s very helpful.
It seems like everyone trains together now – whether you’re at the VR46 Motor Ranch or at Rocco’s Ranch outside Barcelona [where many Spanish and Spanish- and Andorra-based MotoGP riders train]. I suppose this is important mentally, because if you’re training on your own you can worry too much and get bored.
Yes, training alone is more difficult. For me, together is better. We enjoy ourselves, so we forget other things. And now everyone seems to copy the VR46 way, which means we are doing a good job.
World championship leader Pecco Bagnaia was in a class of his own all weekend at Red Bull Ring, winning both races and cruising towards his second MotoGP title
By
Mat Oxley
What can we expect from Ducati for 2024?
The best thing about the Ducati is the traction and the smoothness you feel everywhere. Last year the bike was very good in braking and entry, you could enter with more speed and it turned, but then it was shaking a lot, it was more nervous and the traction in the exit was less, so the opposite of now.
For 2024, honestly, nothing in particular. It seems impossible to ask for more when we have our bike! But I’m always asking for more handling [manoeuvrability], even though we’ve improved a lot compared to 2021 when the fairing was very, very big.
There’s so little pre-season testing now that it’s easy to make mistakes if engineers make big changes, as you found in 2022 pre-season testing.
Yes, it’s a bet. I know perfectly that the 2022 pre-season tests helped us to understand and learn from our mistakes, so I know that our engineers consider everything more now. And I know that the 2024 bike will be incredible. I’m very interested to try it in Valencia [in the one-day post-season test on November 28]. For sure, Valencia won’t be an easy weekend because it’s the last week of November, so it could be very cold, but it will be very useful for us to understand the bike.
