MotoGP News: Francesco Bagnaia Furious After Strange Issue Ruined His Qualifying

Alex Harrington | Aug 3, 2024

Apr 12, 2024; Austin, TX, USA; Francesco Bagnaia (1) of Italy and Ducati Lenovo Team during practice for the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas at Circuit of The Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Francesco Bagnaia, the reigning MotoGP champion and the current leader in the title race, had a bizarre setback moment during the British MotoGP qualifying session that cost him pole position. In a crucial moment of his final run, a sponsor sticker on his helmet visor detached and obscured his vision, leading to a critical loss of time. Consequently, Bagnaia finished second, narrowly missing the top spot by 0.208 seconds to Aleix Espargaro.

"A bit [frustrated] because honestly the potential was there to do the pole position. We have to say that Aleix did an amazing sector 4 and all the weekend is very fast. We also know the Aprilia in this track is fast," Bagnaia shared.

“But then I lost the sponsor banner on the helmet. It went in front of my eyes and I'm very angry for that because it's something that whoever has to manage these kinds of things has to be more precise. Losing the possibility to do a better result in the qualifying for things like this is not good,” Bagnaia elaborated on the incident.

Beyond his personal incident, Bagnaia critiqued the broader qualifying of MotoGP, particularly criticizing the trend of riders slowing down to get a tow from competitors during Qualifying 2.

“We have also to say that the situation in qualifying right now is quite ridiculous considering that ten MotoGP riders can go slow like this to follow other riders. I think we are at the top of our sport. If we are here, it's because we can do things alone and it's quite ridiculous the situation. But until anyone [Stewards] will say something, it will continue like this," he commented, calling for an official review and possible revision of these tactics.

As the championship intensifies, Bagnaia is poised to start the upcoming Sprint race from second on the grid, holding a ten-point lead over his closest competitor, Jorge Martin, who will be starting in fourth.

In retrospect, while Bagnaia acknowledges the strong competition, his frustration highlights significant concerns that could influence the sport's direction. As the MotoGP continues, it will be fascinating to see how these issues are addressed by the athletes, teams, and governing bodies.

2024 MotoGP Standings After British Sprint

1 Francesco Bagnaia
2 Jorge Martin
3 Enea Bastianini (Up 1)
4 Marc Marquez (Down 1)
5 Maverick Viñales
6 Pedro Acosta
7 Brad Binder
8 Fabio di Giannantonio
9 Aleix Espargaro
10 Alex Marquez
11 Franco Morbidelli
12 Marco Bezzecchi
13 Miguel Oliveira
14 Raul Fernandez
15 Fabio Quartararo
16 Jack Miller
17 Augusto Fernandez
18 Joan Mir
19 Johann Zarco
20 Takaaki Nakagami
21 Alex Rins
22 Daniel Pedrosa
23 Luca Marini