MotoGP riders and Team Managers reflect on the twists and turns of Misano

2024 MotoGP World Championship
Round 13 – Misano – Sunday
Gran Premio Red Bull di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini

Marc Marquez – P1

“Those rain drops helped a lot… Maybe Fausto looked down and gave us a helping hand. I thought I had nothing to lose and gave it all. Honestly, I would have never got back to the pits to change the bike, and surely not that soon. Had it rained for a couple of more laps then maybe… but I chose to follow the instincts of the home riders who stayed out. I can’t say if it’s an open championship again, but we want to continue looking for consistency.”

Francesco Bagnaia – P2

“In hindsight, a second place under these conditions was the best result we could have aimed at. Once the rain started falling, I saw Franco (Morbidelli) crashing out and I chose to ride in a bit of a safer way, while Marc (Márquez) ended up being the stronger and braver of us all. I did all I could to stay with him and had a shot at the lead on a couple of occasions at the ‘Curvone’ corner, but I was never incisive enough to make it happen. In the final laps, I saw that Enea’s gap went up to more than three seconds and in that moment, I lost some of the concentration, also due to the fact that my fitness condition wasn’t ideal. We did our best, unlike yesterday, so I’m happy.”

Enea Bastianini – P3

“It was quite a strange and unexpected type of race to some degree, but still a fun one. I wasn’t fully confident at the start of the race as I had some stomach issue in the morning, but I made sure it didn’t affect me mentally. Once the rain came and saw Franco’s crash, I thought about pushing without overdoing. The temptation of getting back to the pits for the bike swap was there, but luckily enough I chose to stay out on track. Towards the end, with the soft rear-tyre, I felt the drop of grip, but I’m still happy that I was able to finish on the podium in front of my home crowd and I’d like to thank the team and the fans for all the support they gave me.”

Brad Binder – P4

“It was a bit of a stressful situation on the grid with rain dropping. A bit sketchy and we weren’t too sure what to do. However, I stuck with my gut feeling and it worked out well. The track was at its worst in the first sector but it quickly dried. It was a chaotic race because you were unsure how hard you could push and how much risk to take. I’m happy with 4th and to be in the top five again and we found a good compromise with the bike. I was comfortable. Now we have to work through the items we have in the test and make more progress.”

Marco Bezzecchi – P5

“A good race after a series of positive GPs. I started well and managed to unlock the fork at the first corner. I got stuck in a fight with Jack and Marc (Miller and Marquez), then I touched Jack and I lost ground. With the first drops of rain, the group came together, I didn’t take many risks, maybe I made a mistake, but I prefer to stay close to the Top5. I believed in it, I defended the position until the end. In these types of conditions, anything can happen, I preferred not to take risks in the crucial phases, but to bring home a solid result. We are getting closer and the sensations while riding are good.”

Alex Marquez – P6

“It was a very tough race on physically speaking and I took a hit. We brought home a good result but towards the end I was really at my limit. The good thing is that we feel good and I’d like to congratulate my brother. Tomorrow we’ll be back on track to work on the next event, again taking place here.”

Fabio Quartararo – P7

“It was really hard, especially the first few laps when it was starting to rain. Usually, rain doesn’t work to our advantage, but I could stay quite close to the top guys, so it was good. I enjoyed the Race. I didn’t have the feeling I expected, but the position is good. I had the other riders in front of me, so whatever they did, I was following. At one moment, I was really close to going into the pits for a bike swap, but I saw that the majority of them kept going, so I decided to stay out. Luckily, the track dries superfast here, so I think it was great.”

Jack Miller – P8

“A solid weekend all ‘round for us in San Marino, showing speed from the get-go and maintaining that consistency across the weekend was unreal.

“It’s no secret that it’s been a bit of a slog for us to start the season, although I do feel that – especially over the last few races – we’ve made progress towards solving some of the issues we were facing, and are making headway on consistency which San Marino showed.

“The weekend started well, got through into Q2 by the skin of my teeth which is the way that it goes sometimes, and I was happy with the feeling we had with the bike and the overall speed that we had to kick things off.

“I latched on with my fellow KTM riders Brad (Binder) and Pedro (Acosta) in the Sprint Race, had Marc (Marquez) behind us for a while before he snuck through, but I really enjoyed that race, we were definitely pushing the limits the entire time and P8 was the best result I could manage.

“Feature Race, another good one for us. Obviously, as an athlete, you’re always wanting more, although from where we have been, to be on camera and in the fight with the boys is very promising and a place we can keep building from.

“My start was good, and then we had a few sprinkles on the visor, I was hoping for more as that’s when I was doing my best work with a few of the others looking like they were thinking about pitting, I was moving my way upwards at that stage.

“The weather didn’t hang around as long as I would have liked, and then towards the end there with about 10 (laps) to go, we started losing the lefthand rear edge of the tyre and we were managing things from there.

“All in all, I’m pretty stoked to be back inside the top 10 with an eighth-place finish, it’s been a lot of work to get here, and we’ll keep chipping away at it to make more progress for the next one.”

Fabio Di Giannantonio – P9

“I am half happy, even if we have to give the right value to what is happening. My shoulder is painful, I am not at 100% and I am not riding naturally. The Team is working hard to try to support me, but it is not easy to express yourself at your best. I didn’t start badly, then in the crucial laps, with the rain, I didn’t take any risks. I gave up a few meters, as a precaution, and lost contact with the leaders. It’s a shame because I then kept a constant pace in the final, similar to that of the strongest riders. Overall, the balance is good: at the moment the priority is the recovery. Tomorrow I won’t be on the track and I will try to make the most of these two weeks of stop.”

Pol Espargaro – P10

“We knew it would rain but we weren’t sure when and for how long. It was wetter in some corners than others. It was interesting! It was complicated because we’re here to make laps and in race conditions but in that situation it doesn’t help to set fast ones! Anyway, I had a good race and with a good position. We did our job today. Tenth was OK.”

Miguel Oliveira – P11

“I never thought about changing bikes in the race. I wanted to wait at least one or two laps more because of the time you lose pitting, especially as the pit lane is super long. I thought I would make certain that it was going to rain properly and actually wet the track. It was so hot that I wanted to be sure that, if I switched, I would not regret it. I didn’t have a good feeling, especially starting with the medium rear, as I couldn’t attack and couldn’t overtake with very tricky track conditions. But, I thought to myself, that the race is long and eventually the tires will work. Then it started to rain and complicated things a lot more. It was very sketchy, very easy to crash, but I managed to stay upright and I also went super slow, so for me to crash was very unlikely. I stayed in an island, between two groups, with eight or 10 seconds in front and another 5 seconds to the bikes behind. I was gaining a good gap to Zarco behind me, so I thought I would ensure I stayed in position and try to finish.”

Johann Zarco – P12

“I am really pleased that our decision to stay on track paid off after the light showers that fell on the track at the start of the race. Fortunately, however, the rain did not intensify to completely soak the asphalt. We finally finished in 12th place, picking up significant points in our situation. It was a well-calculated risk that ultimately paid off. This Grand Prix was honestly not easy to manage due to the weather conditions, but in any case we did not have the speed to push hard enough and hope to do much better. The tests that we will carry out here tomorrow will be crucial for us because we logically aim to make progress that could be of great help to us for the rest of the season.”

Takaaki Nakagami – P13

“It was a tough race, but we’ve been lucky to get to the points today. We’ve struggled during the weekend, and it wasn’t easy to finish in the points. The conditions were tricky, so I spoke to my crew chief, and I decided to use this strategy, as the rain would pass, and it paid off. The feeling was the same; I suffered the chattering, and we were quite frustrated. Let’s see how we can improve during tomorrow’s test”.

Stefan Bradl – P14

“We have had a long weekend, trying many things and working to help the future of Honda. Coming into the race today I wasn’t expecting much but when there are some spots of rain, you never know what can happen and experience counts for a lot. We had nothing to lose in these conditions and the sky did not look dark enough for the rain to stay so I continued on slicks. I am really happy to get 14th and some points, not just for me but also for the guys I am working with in the Test Team. We do a lot of work at these wildcards and also behind the scenes, so I am really pleased to give them something to enjoy.”

Jorge Martin – P15

“Rolling the dice is sometimes not the best choice when you’re battling for the championship. So next time I won’t do it, I’ll stick to Pecco’s position and do the same. I don’t know if I could exactly overtake or not, I thought that I couldn’t so I was behind, waiting, waiting, waiting. Just trying to get that point I could. So at least I could get one more point. Sure everything we can achieve is good, I think we could have had more points today, but the important thing is always to try our best. Other races are strong, so we’ll see for the season, but I’ll focus on myself.”

Maverick Vinales – P16

“I interpreted the situation based on the sensations I had on the bike. When it began to rain, it got hard to ride. I no longer had a good feeling on the bike, and that’s why I entered to pit lane. It was raining rather hard, especially in sectors 2 and 4. Then, soon after I went back out on the track, it suddenly stopped raining. This race does not reflect our level. The speed and potential we have are much higher. We need to have an in-depth look at the problem to figure out why we are unable to express our maximum potential.”

Pedro Acosta – P17

“We took a really good start, we were very fast in the early laps, but I hit Franco Morbidelli hard in the rear, and I lost one wing. The bike was difficult to handle, but it is racing. Then we crashed, but we need to be happy overall, because we were competitive all weekend again, and at the race start too.”

Raul Fernandez  – P18

“We have to learn from Marc (Marquez) because he’s always making the right choices. I started well and was second Aprilia when I saw I was fighting with all the other RS-GP24 bike. I wanted to do the same as them because I planned to fight with them until the end but we made a really big mistake by changing the bike. It’s quite difficult to find some positives from this weekend, not just about the race. We were not competitive and quite slow so, basically, I want to try a lot of things during the test tomorrow in order to understand why we didn’t have the pace and especially in my case, why I can’t ride the bike like I want, which is currently difficult to understand. Looking at the race, in that moment when the rain is starting, you need to be lucky – if we had a lot more rain in that period, it would have been the best choice, but in that moment, you always try to make the right call and it was difficult. Anyway, in general, tomorrow we definitely need to understand why we couldn’t be competitive here.”

Alex Rins – P19

“Today’s Race was a little bit difficult to manage because I decided to go to the box to change bikes, going to wet tyres. It was already raining for two laps. But as soon as we went out on track again, the rain stopped. So, after two laps of riding with the wet tyres, I was forced to go back into the pits and go back to the dry bike. After that, I had a better pace than the others, but it was hard to overtake. Tomorrow is an important day for the future, because we are going to test some new items. Let’s see if we can do a good test, so maybe we also have some new items for the Misano #2 race weekend.”

Franco Morbidelli – DNF

“Yea, pity, because I felt really good today, this morning we started really well. I wanted to win, so I decided to don’t hold back so much, on the rainy conditions, but the risk didn’t pay off.”

Aleix Espargaro – DNF

“At the start of the race, I was not very competitive, and I struggled to maintain the group’s pace. When I saw that it was raining, I thought that it was the right time to take a risk. This weekend we were not competitive. We are struggling with the lack of grip and we are not at the level we would like to be.”

Augusto Fernandez – DNF

“My start was good, I was gaining positions, moving forward, but unfortunately I crashed in the last corner. Despite the crash, we have been making steps this weekend, we are progressively gaining the confidence back on the bike. We have the test tomorrow to continue doing so, and then we will be looking forward to Misano 2 in two weeks!”

Team Managers

Francesco Guidotti – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager

“A nice race! A lot of contact at the beginning and the first laps were pretty wild. A few laps later the rain came down and provided some challenging moments. Our riders managed it really well. It was a key moment of the race. 4th, 8th and 10th and three top ten positions is something to be happy about and we recovered points in the manufacturers standings. Tomorrow will be an important test so we are hoping for dry conditions and a busy day and can then look towards another race at Misano.”

Pablo Nieto – VR46 Team Manager

“A race in the balance, between rain and sun, and really complicated to manage in some crucial moments after the first laps. Both Marco and Fabio were clever, they didn’t lose their temper and tried to stay focused in the group fighting for the Top10. Marco left yesterday’s crash behind him, he finished very well after a difficult start, he was thrilled in the battle and didn’t give up. Fabio also did well, he’s not at 100% with his shoulder, but he overcame a demanding weekend like the one at home in the best possible way. A week, that of Misano, really special in which we felt in a particular way the support of the fans and of all our partners.”

Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director

“It’s been a while since we had a flag-to-flag race. These are always tricky. The team tries to inform the riders, providing them with as much info as possible and the latest weather predictions, but in the end it’s the riders’ call if they want to switch bikes or not. Fabio made the right decision staying out, and he rode very well. When the rain was a bit heavier, he was catching up with the front group and that allowed him to fight for seventh place. Álex was riding in 19th place when the rain started coming down harder, so he had little to lose. These things can go one of two ways: if it had kept raining, he would have profited from it, but since it suddenly stopped raining, it turned out it was the wrong call. That’s racing. Tomorrow we will be back at the Misano track for the official IRTA test. We’re hoping for dry weather so we can collect some good data, both with an eye on the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix and bike development in general.”

Wilco Zeelenberg – Trackhouse Team Manager

“We’re happy with the five points but, of course, very unhappy with the speed and the feeling of the boys while riding. The race was quite special with the conditions. People were entering the pit lane to change bikes and change back which was, clearly, not the right call because it was just a quick shower. On Miguel’s side, staying out was a big benefit and meant he could grab some extra points because he finally finished 11th. Coming from 18th on the grid, I think we should be pleased and satisfied with this result. Saying that, you always want more and it’s a pity that we have to say that we are happy with that. P10 was 10 seconds ahead and P12 was 10 seconds behind, so we were in the middle of an island. The riders coming in for the short rain shower destroyed their race and looking back, it is always easy to say that if it continued raining, they would be the happy guys. But it didn’t continue, so the best option was to stay out and try to control the situation. It was clearly drying up and for those who had come in, they had to come in again to change the bike again, which made them lose a lap. Overall, we definitely need to improve for the next round here in Misano.”

Davide Brivio – Trackhouse Team Principal

“The conditions have been tricky with the rain after a few laps. Miguel was very smart not to stop, so we managed to finish 11th, to recover good positions from the start and score some points – that was good for Miguel. Raul followed some riders in front of him and I think he was influenced by their decisions and decided to stop when the rain started. Of course, you never know and can’t predict the future but, unfortunately, the rain didn’t last too long, so he had to come back in again to swap back to the bike with slicks and lost a lot of time. Then the race was over for him. To take the positives, also from Raul, he had the possibility to try some different things and to understand our bike better at this track. Tomorrow we will work with both, Miguel and Raul, to be better prepared for the next round, which will be here in Misano again. So, we are focused on preparing for that.”

Massimo Rivola – Aprilia Racing

“Another disappointing weekend. The positive note is that all signs concerning the medium tyre are rather comforting. The decision to switch bikes when it started raining was clearly the wrong one, but in conditions of slippery grip, the bike sent us clear messages, similar to what we saw in the Aragón race. We are fortunate to have a test on Monday and then another race on this track, so we’ll have the opportunity to learn a lot, and we will do just that.”

Nicolas Goyon – GASGAS Team Manager

“It was a frustrating Sunday for Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 in Misano. Since the start of the weekend, Pedro Acosta had a great speed and good chances for today, but I think that he was a bit impatient in the race, and while trying to overtake Morbidelli, he lost a front wing. In these conditions, you lose a lot of stability. He crashed shortly after, so from this point, it was a difficult race. He gambled and changed bikes when the rain became a bit more intense, but it was a lost gamble. Let’s keep the positives, he was super competitive until the events, the bike set up was good, so we have no doubt that he will learn a lot from today, and come back even hungrier for the next round. Augusto Fernandez crashed while he was P13 after a good start, so it is a big shame because he said that he felt very good. We need to transform this good feeling into points, if we want to make a step forward. We have an important test day tomorrow in Misano, so the work continues tonight for Red Bull GASGAS Tech3.”

Piero Taramasso – Michelin

“Our decision to select a harder compound for the front tyres paid off.  While the first day was dedicated to cleaning up the racing line and finding the best tyre choice for the front and rear, we then saw consistently high levels of performance during qualifying and the two races. Regardless of the number of laps, our tyres always allowed the riders to maintain a fast pace, and let’s not forget that the fastest race lap, set by Marc Marquez, came on the 20th lap (out of a total of 27) of the Grand Prix. We also saw that various tyre combinations worked well. While all the riders chose the Medium compound front and the Soft rear during the Sprint race, almost half of the riders switched to the Medium rear for the Grand Prix – and this was the case for Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia, who finished first and second respectively. However, we also had a Medium front/Soft rear combination on the podium with Enea Bastianini in third place. As a result, we are satisfied that we provided our partners with a tyre allocation perfectly adapted to the situation, irrespective of the set-up of the bikes or the riding style.”

MotoGP Misano Race Results

Misano MotoGP Top Speeds Across Weekend

MotoGP Championship Standings