Italian rider Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) said on Wednesday that Portugal’s Miguel Oliveira (Aprilia) “is a big rival” in the MotoGP World Championship, which starts this weekend with the Portuguese Grand Prix, in Portimão.
In an interview about his nomination to receive the Laureus Return of the Year award as he recovered from a 91-point deficit in 2022 to become world champion, Bagnaia stressed that Miguel Oliveira is “one of the best drivers on the grid “. always in “struggle for wins and podiums”.
“He’s a great rival. I fought with him for the Moto2 title in 2018 [que o italiano conquistou, deixando o português em segundo], it was a tough fight and it was hard to beat. It has smooth and precise operation. With Aprilia it will be one of the strongest this year. We start in Portugal, his home race, so I think it will be very competitive. We shall see”he said.
During a press conference in which the Lusa agency participated, Bagnaia revealed that “he dreamed of becoming a world champion since he was a kid”.
The Italian driver was also “very proud” of being nominated for the Laureus awards, which he shares with Dane Christian Eriksen (footballer who returned to the Premier League after cardiac arrest during Euro2020), Norwegian Jakob Ingebrigtsen, recovered athlete from a defeat in the 1,500 meters to winning the world title in the 5,000 meters, American Klay Thompson, basketball player of the Golden State Warriors who became NBA champion after 30 months of absence due to injuries, Dutch Annemiek van Vleuten, cyclist who overcame an illness to win the Tour de France Femme, and with North American Tiger Woods, a golfer returning to the Masters after a career-threatening car accident.
“I feel like we’re doing well. But to see my name next to the other nominees is a great emotion. I’ve been following Klay Thompson for a long time. It’s great to be nominated among these names. It means we “We are doing well. We have to keep going. Last year’s recovery was incredible,” Bagnaia stressed.
The transalpine rider, who was already Moto2 champion in 2018, says the Laureus is “the most important accolade in the sport” but that this nomination is “a consequence of winning the 2022 championship”.
“It’s a huge pride. It’s like an actor winning an Oscar. I was speechless when I heard it [da nomeação]he confessed.
The Ducati rider explained that it wasn’t until the British GP, at Silverstone – on a weekend where he struggled with problems with his bike, but where he would ultimately win the race – that he began to believe it was possible to win the title.
“It was a difficult weekend for us. We struggled with the bike all weekend, but in the race we won. It was important for the championship. I realized that to give my best, even if the bike was not at its best, it was possible to win. Then I realized it was possible to recover,” he revealed.
He confessed to being a “huge fan” of Formula 1, which has broken crowd records, and defended that the MotoGP championship “must keep evolving” as it “could provide more spectacle”.
“The spectacle we can offer the fans is greater than that of F1, we can put up great battles. Dorna [promotora do campeonato] does its job well, but we have to take another step forward,” he defended.
Francesco Bagnaia rejected the idea of being favourite, but admitted he feels “good” after winter testing, dismissing criticism of him and those who referred to the bike as the secret to victory.
“I think it’s normal that we can’t please everyone. At Valentino [Rossi] won, they said it was for the bike. When Mark [Márquez] won, it was for the bike. There are always 10% of people who always talk bad about us. When we see the comments or listen to podcasts, we feel bad, but I decided that the most important thing is to win. What remains in history is the championship I won and not the words of people,” he underlined.
As for the favorites in the fight for the 2023 title, he was adamant: “Myself, Marc Márquez [Honda]Fabio Quartararo [Yamaha] and Enea Bastianini [Ducati]”.
MotoGP is the main category of the Motorcycling Speed World Championship, the championship of which kicks off this weekend in Portugal.
The Moto2 and Moto3 categories are the other categories up for grabs.
Source: DN
