Double world champion Pecco Bagnaia has finally brought an end to his difficult run of form since the summer break by securing a direct appearance in Q2 during Friday practice at the Indonesian Grand Prix. The factory Ducati rider admitted that a crucial technical realization achieved last weekend in Japan served as the catalyst for a significant breakthrough with his motorcycle handling at Mandalika.
Prior to Friday's sessions, the Italian star had endured a frustrating stretch of six consecutive rounds failing to directly break into the top ten on Friday. That difficult period included consecutive non-finishes at Silverstone, Aragon, and Misano, followed by subdued seventh and eighth-place finishes at Spielberg and Motegi respectively. However, that negative streak was emphatically broken in Indonesia as he scraped into the top ten for his first direct Q2 berth since Assen, a result that caught him by surprise.
Speaking to reporters including Crash.net, Bagnaia explained that the insights gained in Japan drastically improved his feeling under braking and during corner entry. He honestly admitted that he did not expect to perform so strongly on Friday given the layout typically poses challenges for their package. By putting in consecutive laps during the morning session, he successfully rebuilt the crucial riding confidence that had been missing for months.
Despite the positive step forward, the day was not entirely straightforward inside the garage. He confessed to experiencing minor front-end instability issues throughout the afternoon, though he kept the precise technical details under wraps. The workload was further compounded by the necessity to constantly switch back and forth between two bikes running entirely different set-ups during the afternoon practice sessions.
Looking ahead to the remainder of the weekend, Bagnaia maintains a realistic view regarding the pace of Aprilia at the front, noting they currently remain out of reach. He highlighted that he continues to concede too much lap time specifically through sector two and sector four. Nonetheless, he believes subtle adjustments to his riding style regarding lean angle and establishing a unified machine setup will yield substantial performance gains.
“Honestly, I wasn’t thinking, looking at yesterday, that I was able to do it here, because normally we struggle quite a bit,” Bagnaia told reporters. “Pero this morning, thanks to the race in Japan where we understood something, I felt better on braking and entry. So, I was able to do more laps, consecutive laps, and that helped me to find more confidence. Tomorrow will be better.”
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