«Ducati favorite. Today everyone wants to drive it»- Corriere.it

Mauro Sanchini, former rider, since 2014 talent commentator of the MotoGp for Sky Sport, answers on the speakerphone. He has just landed in Lisbon and is driving towards Portimao, where the world championship will officially begin on Thursday (riders press conference from 6pm on Sky Sport MotoGp). Here is the first novelty of the year, it no longer debuts in Qatar but in the south of Portugal (Sunday at 3 pm on Sky Sport MotoGp, Sky Sport Uno and streaming on Now): «We sleep in a resort overlooking the slope at the bottom of the straight and on turns 7 and 8». How to be, immediately, on the news.

Sanchini, another world championship that begins. Can you still put up with Guido Meda?

«Between us there is a lot of complicity, the secret is that we really enjoy ourselves. I admire him and he admires me, no one wants to invade the other’s garden. Even if there is one thing that drives me crazy”

Meaning what?

“Its mess. As an ex-racer I’ve always been attentive to details, I hated to screw things up. When we are in the cabin, on the other hand, everything falls on him. I go crazy to see his jacket slipping under the wheels of the chair »

You’ve been through a lot together

“At first it scared me a little. Hell, we’re still talking about Guido Meda, an institution. At the first grand prix I had a problem with the audio, but I didn’t realize it. I kept talking, even though he started punching me on his arm. I was terrified”

Is every year like the first day of school?

“Yes, as in Fresh water, the film in which Albanese loses his memory and does the same thing again the next morning. But she’s always cool. Who have I seen as a kid, today he has become a successful driver. I see myself as their cousin, brother would be too much”

Who is the funniest in the paddock?

“Jack Miller, definitely. Nice, outgoing, spontaneous. I once saw him in the Ktm offices doing a wheelie on the motocross bike. And then I say Quartararo, in the evening you can always find him playing tennis football”

And the one all set in front of the cameras but who lets himself go outside?

“Luca Marini. You see him and he looks like a head teacher, or a university professor. Always handsome, elegant, with light hair, magnetic eyes. But outside he is much more light-hearted. And he’s fast on the bike: he’s not Valentino Rossi’s half-brothers by chance »

Well, has MotoGP recovered from the farewell of its legendary number 46?

«It was a wound, for everyone. Inevitable, Valentino raced for a quarter of a century. With him the organizers sat very calm, they didn’t have to invent anything. Tickets sold themselves. In the first races of last season you really felt the lack. After people got used to it. They came to us enthusiastic: “So can Ducati make a comeback?”. Difficult to imagine until recently»

In short, the force of time.
“People have to learn to move on. Times are different, its protagonists ditto. There will no longer be the Valentino Rossis or Lorenzo on call. Kids today have to be much more careful about what they say. In 2009, at Mugello, Barberà fell and accused Simoncelli: “Your fault, he opened his leg”. The Sic replied in his own way: “Yes ok, like your sister …!”. An exit that you can’t afford now, it’s normal for the riders to have the handbrake on. But they are great professionals, they train in an incredible way. And in fact they have a bestial physique, they look like Jury Chechi on a motorbike»

However, there will be something she doesn’t like about today’s bikes.
«They are too heavy, I prefer the light ones. Then the carbon brakes are too strong: we need a technology that brakes less, thus facilitating overtaking. Finally, why not make a smaller engine at the hybrid level?”

Ducati dominates: should Ferrari learn from the Borgo Panigale red?
«Good question, I’ll ask Dall’Igna (laughs, ed)

. Anyway yes, but because everyone has to learn from everyone. The strength of Valentino Rossi, for example, was this: he had won nine World Championships, but he also listened to the riders of the lower categories »

But why is Ducati so superior to everyone?

«I’ve known Dall’Igna since my Superbike days. Already there I told him: “You should make an engine for the MotoGP”. Today they have great power which, however, hasn’t detracted from driveability. It consumes well, on every track it guarantees feeling for the riders. If yesterday everyone wanted to get on the Yamaha, today there’s nobody who doesn’t want the Ducati».

So will Bagnaia be able to defend the title?

«The favorites are him, Bastianini and Quartararo. Pecco comes from an extraordinary season and we will see him even more matured. Before he had so much pressure on him, now perhaps he feels more convinced and therefore lighter. Enea with an unofficial bike – even if the Gresini team is very strong – still won four races. Then in the finals he is irresistible for the way he preserves the tyres. And there’s nothing to say about how Quartararo drives. But watch out also for Martin, Viñales, Bezzecchi and Marini. The latter has a different driving style from the others. If he can express it on the track … »

Bagnaia and Bastianini together in Ducati: a couple that explodes?

«We have the first six races unencrypted, they will be on Sky and Tv8. Up to there they could hold up, then I don’t know. We are talking about two riders who won 11 races last year, neither of them will want to finish behind. But Ducati was right to want two first guides. Do you remember the Yamaha with Rossi and Lorenzo? They beat each other up, but they always won. The rivalry has pushed them beyond their limits.”

And Marquez?

«I haven’t forgotten it, I’m keeping it in consideration for the World Cup. He’s strong in training with the motocross bike. Of course, it can no longer be the same as before. Years go by and he has had a serious injury. But the limit of him is the bike. For testing, Honda brought four different prototypes to Malaysia, but he returned home with last year’s bike. Maybe he hid a bit to spur the techs on. Had he done the best time, from Japan they would have told him that it didn’t matter to make changes. However, if anyone can fill a technical gap, it’s him. I hope you come back 100%. Today’s youngsters deserve the chance to beat him. A bit like what happened in tennis with Alcaraz and Nadal».

Do you like the Sprint Race? (The one in Portugal will also exceptionally be visible on the Sky Sport MotoGP YouTube channel)
“I’m one of the few in favor. I come from Superbike, where race 1 was held at 12 and race 2 at 15. It was cool, you finished and you wanted to start over right away. And then in this way the championship will remain open even longer »