Bagnaia and the Ducati Lenovo Team take Sunday win at Motegi. Fourth place at the line for Enea Bastianini
• Five Ducati machines in top 5: Jorge Martín is second with the Desmosedici GP machine of Pramac Racing Team, followed by Marc Márquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP). Fifth place for the other rider of Pramac Racing Team, Franco Morbidelli
Francesco Bagnaia and Ducati Lenovo accrue maximum points in the Japanese Grand Prix as they took the win in the 24-lap race at the Mobility Resort Motegi, in what was the sixteenth event of the season. Enea Bastianini crossed the line in fourth place, not far from podium positions.
Bagnaia had a great start from second place on the grid and took the lead mid-corner into turn one. The reigning world champion stayed in front up to the chequered flag, showing an excellent place while managing the margin on Martín the best possible way, not allowing the latter to get in contention for the win. This is Pecco’s first win at Motegi with Ducati, the eighth of the season for him, a new personal record for the Italian.
Bastianini’s start was solid from row two, although he could not be as effective as he would have liked in the first two laps. After dropping down to seventh place at the start of second la, Enea had to battle hard to overtake first Miller and then Binder, whom he managed to edge with 15 laps to go. With clear track ahead of him, the Ducati rider #23 was finally able to find a good rhythm as he gradually bridged the gap to Marc Márquez but ultimately came up half a second short of third position at the chequered flag.
As the sixteenth Grand Prix of the season draws to a close, Bagnaia is still second in the championship standings, albeit now with a much-reduced, ten-point gap to Martín. Bastianini is third, 79 points behind the leader. The Ducati Lenovo Team still leads the teams’ standings (695 points), with Ducati already crowned the constructors’ champion.
The riders of Ducati Lenovo Team will be back in action on October 18-30 at Phillip Island for the Australian Grand Prix, the fourth-last event of the 2024 season.
Francesco Bagnaia (#1 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 1st
“We’re leaving Motegi with the maximum number of points available, so I’m really happy. We did a perfect job during the weekend. It wasn’t easy, because in the early stages of the race Pedro (Acosta) was very close and pushing hard, while at the end Jorge (Martín) was making up ground; when the lead dropped to less than a second, I tried to find that little extra pace-wise and it worked. The final lap was hard though, given the grip level we had left. We managed to complete plenty of laps with used tyres throughout the weekend and worked well with regards to mapping. Now we head to Phillip Island with full awareness of our abilities.”
Enea Bastianini (#23 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 4th
“The race didn’t go as I’d hoped. After the overtake by Brad (Binder) I lost a few more positions as he made me go wide at turn 10 and others took advantage. After that, I tried to do the best, but it was too late already; the two at the front had pulled away already and Marc (Márquez) managed to overtake Binder much quicker than I did. It took me a lot longer and stressed the rear tyre in the many attempts – and this impacted my performance in the second half of the race. I tried to bridge the gap to Marc, and I got really close to him, but not close enough to give it a try.”
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“Pecco is a true champion. It’s truly hard to predict who will eventually come out victorious for the title, but it’s an incredible show. I’m very proud of the team and of all of those who are working hard for this goal. Enea had a solid race and did well in staying focused; a pity for the first laps, which took away any chance to win. This is surely something we must keep working on.”
