Bagnaia, Miller 'excited' to start Sepang test; 'we have a good base'
This weekend’s first official MotoGP test of 2022 will see potential title contenders Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller start their preparations for the new season.
Title contender is an especially deserved term to use when looking at Bagnaia as the Italian was the most in-form rider towards the end of 2021.
Bagnaia claimed four wins from the last six races and would have had six consecutive poles had Pramac Ducati rider Jorge Martin not beaten the former Moto2 champion to top spot during the closing stages of Q2 in Valencia.
While Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo is the current world champion and an obvious favourite for the title, it’s hard to look past Bagnaia as the outright favourite based on recent performances.
A big indication of where Bagnaia and Ducati stand going into next month’s season opener will be these two pre-season tests - Sepang and Mandalika, which the 25 year-old ‘can’t wait’ to get started.
Speaking ahead of tomorrow’s opening day of the Sepang test, Bagnaia added: "I'm very excited to get back on my Desmosedici GP finally. The last test in November at Jerez was very positive, so I hope to find the same sensations on the bike right away, despite the stop of more than two months.
"It's going to be a busy couple of days, but a lot of the work has been done by Michele [Pirro], so we already have a good base to work from, and luckily we have three more days in Indonesia next week to continue our program.
"I can't wait to get started so that I can be as ready as possible for the start of this season!"
Joining Bagnaia in the factory garage is Jack Miller who managed to recover from a positive COVID-19 test that initially saw the team postpone its 2022 MotoGP bike launch.
Like Bagnaia, Miller heads into his first track action of 2022 as one of the better riders come the end of last season.
One of the key areas Miller has spoken about improving going into his second year inside the team is tyre conservation, something he'll have a prime opportunity to test this weekend given Malaysia's extreme heat.
Miller said: "I'm thrilled to be back with my team here in Sepang. We haven't been in Malaysia for two years now!
"It's very hot, and as always, the tropical weather will be unpredictable. Still, I hope we'll have two days without rain, which will allow us to make the most of the available sessions to find the feeling and work on the Desmosedici GP.
"Michele has already lapped here earlier this week (MotoGP Shakedown test), so we will have a good starting point. I can't wait to get back to work."
