Pecco Bagnaia explains major braking breakthrough at Austrian MotoGP

Third-fastest on the opening day at the Austrian MotoGP, Francesco Bagnaia says he has a feeling with the front of his Ducati Desmosedici GP25 that he has not felt before this season.

Bagnaia ended Friday 0.268 seconds behind his Ducati Lenovo teammate, Marc Marquez, after showing competitive speed and pace all day.

“I’m happy, happy about the day,” Francesco Bagnaia said, speaking to MotoGP.com after Practice in Spielberg.

“We were focusing on used tyres to try the front hard [compound tyre].

“We managed to do a good job, I think, also in terms of working on the bike and the setup – so, happy.

“I’m very positive about what I’ve felt today in terms of braking; I was able to be very competitive in the braking zones, so I’m happy – it was the first time I felt this feeling with the front this season.”

Asked whether the inclusion of the 355mm front brake discs that he found positive in Aragon were a factor in his good feeling in Austria, Bagnaia admitted that this could be the case.

“Maybe it’s a factor,” he said.

“The last races we weren’t able to go with the 355mm [discs], so maybe it’s a good reason.
“Today I was braking so hard, so I was happy about it and I really enjoyed.”

The Italian noted that rear tyre wear seems higher than in previous years at the Red Bull Ring.

“Then, it’s not easy this season to remain constant with the rear tyre, it looks like the wear is much higher compared to last year,” he said.

“It’s the same for everybody, so it’s okay.

“The time attack went well, the pace was good, so a positive day.”

KTMs and stability control

Some KTM riders showed good speed in Austria, including Pedro Acosta who finished second, ahead of Bagnaia, in Practice.

Enea Bastianini was also fast but made mistakes that left him 11th, and Brad Binder was also able to get into Q2 directly in 10th place.

Bagnaia affirmed that KTM looks competitive at its home race, and suggested that it might be benefitting from the new stability control system – something the Italian says he is not yet comfortable with.

“Maybe with the new slide control they [KTM] did a step in front, like others,” Bagnaia said.

“Honestly, I tried today but I’m still not used to go with the slide control, it’s a bit strange. “But, apart from that, I think that right now I’m competitive but I want to wait until the race because normally the race is my weak point this season, the fight. So, let’s see.

“Apart from Marc [Marquez] and Alex [Marquez], I think that the KTMs and some Aprilias are competitive.”