Francesco Bagnaia is the first Ducati rider in 15 years to win the MotoGP title. Here are the key moments that helped him overhaul long-time points leader Fabio Quartararo and ultimately seal the crown in the ValenciaGP:
Bagnaia came into the 2022 season as one of the favourites to fight for the championship having ended up just 26 points behind 2021 title winner Fabio Quartararo at the conclusion of a breakout campaign for the Ducati rider.
It was at this point that he set himself on the path to the 2022 world title, albeit by unconventional means that – at one stage – had basically ended his hopes.1 May 2022 – Spanish Grand Prix – JerezBagnaia had begun to make strides in understanding the 2022 Ducati at the previous round in Portugal, gaining more confidence on the front end of the bike.
“I think we did a good thing in stopping trying to adapt this bike to me and just leaving the bike the same,” Bagnaia said at Jerez."For sure this bike needed a different riding style because now I can be faster in the corners. So, it’s a bit different. But finally I think that I’m back to my best shape like I was last year and I would like to continue like this now, not losing points.
But that Mugello win did open Bagnaia’s eyes to the problems he had already caused himself and just what he needed to do going forward. “Terrified” that he would crash while leading the race as spots of rain appeared at Assen, Bagnaia left Holland 66 points behind Quartararo going into the summer break. His title hopes were still remote at this stage, but not impossible.Bagnaia had endured a tough weekend in the run-up to Sunday’s British GP at Silverstone, having generally lacked pace to be considered a victory contender.
“The problem was that I did maybe on the remaining five or six laps, it was without rear grip, so in this last part of the race I was just doing my riding style because I wasn’t able to use the rear tyre. Bagnaia would later say on the eve of his title win that the Silverstone win gave him “a lot of motivation” given how he turned that weekend around, and was one of the key points on his path to glory.Motorsport Images
Taking the chequered flag in second, Bagnaia was then just 10 points behind Quartararo and for the first time started to truly consider himself as a title challenger. But a pep talk from his Ducati teammate Jack Miller on the grid reassured Bagnaia that he could be fast in the wet, and the Italian duly went on to finish third while Quartararo failed to score points when an error in front tyre pressures from his crew chief meant he could finish no higher than 17th.
Third was a good enough result for Bagnaia, as he marched 14 points clear of Quartararo to lead the championship for the first time in his MotoGP career. Two crashes on Saturday - one in FP3 that left him in Q1, and a second in Q2 that left him ninth on the grid - knocked his confidence and led to him feeling pressure in the championship race for the first time.
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