‘Like Brno’ - Why Ducati “will have more potential” than Aprilia at Aragon MotoGP

Pecco Bagnaia says the MotoGP Aragon Grand Prix should be “a different story compared to Silverstone” and anticipates Ducati to have an edge over Aprilia.

Ducati suffered a bruising weekend at the British Grand Prix, as Aprilia romped to a 1-2-3 in both races.

Ahead of the Aragon Grand Prix, Ducati’s leading rider, Marc Marquez, is now 40 points adrift of championship leader Jorge Martin.

The anticlockwise nature of the Aragon track is expected to suit Marquez, but team-mate Pecco Bagnaia is confident Ducati will have an overall edge over Aprilia because the circuit characteristics are much more “like Brno”.

“It’s a different story compared to Silverstone,” Bagnaia told the media on Thursday at Aragon.

“I’m sure that Ducati here will have more potential than the Aprilia because the level of grip, the layout is more like Brno, this track for us.

“And it’s the only left-handed track that I feel good [on].

“So, let’s see if we can fight, if we can have the potential, if we can work well.

“Luckily, this time Cristian [Gabarrini, crew chief] is here, so we can work much better. So, I’m ready for the weekend.”

Bagnaia finished third last season at Aragon as part of a Ducati podium lockout and scored his maiden MotoGP victory at the venue in 2021.

Asked why he is strong at Aragon compared to other left-handed tracks, Bagnaia replied:“Because normally I struggle when the corners are tight.

“And in this track you have a lot of very long, fast corners, and it’s better for me.

“This track is good for me because good braking, good, open left corners. So, it’s helping me.”

Bagnaia’s British Grand Prix was a nightmare, as he struggled to 17th in the sprint before crashing out of the grand prix.

It was a tumble that left him bemused and admitting that Ducati had no answer for it.

Talking about his Silverstone weekend, Bagnaia said: “My problem is the rear grip, and at Silverstone, soft or medium, I was doing three laps with a good amount of grip.

“And then I was completely without the rear. So, for me it was difficult, also during the time attack.”