{"id":2766,"date":"2024-11-07T00:23:12","date_gmt":"2024-11-07T00:23:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/?p=2766"},"modified":"2024-11-07T00:23:12","modified_gmt":"2024-11-07T00:23:12","slug":"martin-bagnaia-battle-malaysia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/?p=2766","title":{"rendered":"ITS TIME: Mart\u00edn and Bagnaia Battle in Malaysia"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n
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\"Jorge<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Riders teach each other. This one brakes wonderfully, that one finds exit grip to accelerate. Differences focus the learning process until just two or three riders break free of the pack to race at their own bootstrap level.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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That\u2019s what we saw this weekend between point leader\u00a0Jorge Mart\u00edn\u00a0(Pramac Ducati) and two-time World Champion\u00a0Francesco Bagnaia\u00a0(factory Ducati), who left Sepang 24 points behind Mart\u00edn. One race remains. Had it not been for destructive flooding, its venue would have been Valencia. Now, that race will run in Barcelona in two weeks\u2019 time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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In qualifying, these two took turns making shocking reductions in lap times, causing other riders to say, \u201cThey are on another level.\u201d Martin broke the lap record on his first exit, taking a half-second advantage. At the end of the back-and-forth, it was Bagnaia on top by 0.212 second from Mart\u00edn, with the rest\u2014including both M\u00e1rquez brothers\u2014nearly a second behind<\/i>\u00a0in Q2.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Jorge<\/picture><\/div>
With Bagnaia crashing out of Saturday\u2019s sprint race, Mart\u00edn was able to extend his point lead.MotoGP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Next came the Saturday sprint, which is half the length of Sunday\u2019s GP, meaning it\u2019s crucially important to get away first. The articulate\u00a0Luca Marini, now on the slowly recuperating Honda, said, \u201cIf you stay behind another bike, it\u2019s a disaster. The temperature of everything rises a lot. You feel the heat in your body, the front tire, and the engine.<\/p>\n

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\u201cEverything starts to be slower\u2014the engine [loses power], the front tire stops less, and the rear tire temperature rises.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Kenny Roberts has spoken of concentration\u2014simplifying the tasks the mind must manage, and cutting unproductive program steps. Zen speaks of being unable to do your best\u00a0until the outcome no longer matters<\/i>\u00a0to you (because the outcome is just another distraction). In photos, Mart\u00edn has his haunted look, but Bagnaia continues to look cheerfully goofy. Bagnaia is seemingly not spooked by problems with the bike, either. He says he has complete confidence that his crew will know what to do. Both men have experienced anxiety at an intolerably high level. Both men function at a high level nevertheless.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Jorge<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Before the sprint, Mart\u00edn said to his team manager, Gino Borsoi, \u201cI will go for it. I don\u2019t want to finish second, third. I want to win. If Pecco is stronger, he will win. If not, he won\u2019t. Tomorrow is a bit the same: Try to do it. If Pecco is much stronger, it\u2019s OK.\u201d In other words, realism, not do-or-die.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Holding the point lead, all Mart\u00edn must do is keep as many points as possible without accepting undue risk.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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In Saturday\u2019s sprint, Bagnaia lost the front on lap 3, in turn 9, and crashed. \u201cAs soon as I entered that corner I hit the bump that is there and I lost the front. It\u2019s a shame but it is something that can happen. And I absolutely will not change my mentality and my mindset for tomorrow. I will go full send, try to win the race.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"MotoGP<\/picture><\/div>
Ducati\u2019s winning streak continues.MotoGP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Marc M\u00e1rquez\u00a0said, \u201c[Bagnaia] was pushing. He did what he needed to do and tomorrow again he needs to take a risk and try to win the race because it\u2019s his only chance to recover points.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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He went on to describe the track surface in the corner: \u201cIt\u2019s on the perfect line. You have like three different asphalts, and at some point there is no asphalt.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Enea Bastianini\u00a0(factory Duc) said, \u201cI lost the front in that corner two times, but I was more lucky than Pecco.\u201d Meanwhile,\u00a0Marco Bezzecchi\u00a0(VR46 Duc) called the approach to turn 9 \u201cthe most difficult braking on the circuit.\u201d He spoke of \u201ca lot of dips on the straight, so the bike tends to have a lot of vibrations.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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These are ripples, forged into braking zones by the tires of heavy racing cars.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThen, when you lean to enter the left-hand corner the asphalt is very bad because it\u2019s uphill and when cars go around it they scrape it a lot. There are two patches. The problem is that the perfect line would be to cut the big one, but there it is very ruined,\u201d said The Beast.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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It would appear that there is more to MotoGP than \u201cGoin\u2019 in deep an\u2019 comin\u2019 out hard.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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The sprint left Mart\u00edn leading Bagnaia by 29 points, with M\u00e1rquez 100 points away in third. Never mind. Another race, another opportunity. Start afresh, ready again to attempt perfection.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"MotoGP<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Sunday<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Sunday\u2019s GP was stopped on lap 1 for a multi-rider collision that included\u00a0Fabio Quartararo,\u00a0Brad Binder, and\u00a0Jack Miller. Quartararo\u2019s spare bike was configured for rain, so making it usable took some time, and part-worn tires were all that was left. He would come through to finish sixth, a great encouragement for Yamaha people.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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The press corps poured forth superlatives at the 19-lap restart, while TV watchers would pronounce the next three laps the most exciting they\u2019d ever seen. There was no excitement on the part of the riders, who were attending to their own agendas: Bagnaia to take maximum points, Mart\u00edn to win if possible but if not, to finish high while keeping clear of pursuers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Mart\u00edn saw that Bagnaia was unassailable and so he focused on guaranteeing second place. Both of them knew that continuing the battle could invite M\u00e1rquez (third) to advance on them while their attention was on each other, and not their lap times. This is professional racing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Brad<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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Bagnaia would go on to say, \u201cMaybe it sounds strange, but today I didn\u2019t feel under pressure. I felt comfortable on the bike right away, in every situation. I wasn\u2019t worried at all about today. I knew what I had to do and I was ready to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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And Mart\u00edn? \u201cFrom my side, maybe I had to be a bit more calm, but I felt I was able to fight with him. So I tried it, but at some point I thought, \u2018OK, it\u2019s too much risk, so wait behind.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThe problem is that as soon as I went behind him everything started to work quite bad (see Marini\u2019s remarks above). I also had Marc quite close so I had to push.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"MotoGP<\/picture><\/div>
\n<\/figcaption>M\u00e1rquez would ultimately crash on lap 7, making life a little easier on Mart\u00edn. \u201cI had some space to Enea [Bastianini] and then I was trying to continue with focus, with a really good pace,\u201d the Pramac rider added.<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cAt some point I tried to recover to Pecco. I saw that he was struggling, and he went wide because of the very difficult conditions today. But then I made a mistake at corner 9 and I said, \u2018OK, Jorge, that\u2019s enough.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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The tires, the setup, the high temperature, and what your lunch is doing all contribute to your lap time. If you measure success in championships rather than corners, you accept this. Yet fans cheer hardest for the do-or-die riders. The attraction is pure emotion, undiluted by cool Cartesian analysis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Francesco<\/picture><\/div>
Bagnaia rebounded well on Sunday to top Mart\u00edn in one of the more action-packed grand prix of the year.MotoGP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
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After the race, Mart\u00edn said, \u201cI thank Pecco because thanks to his level I improved mine every day. We got stronger every day and we have never had a battle like this in our careers. We were always close but we never had a duel like what I was told were\u00a0eleven overtakes in three laps<\/i>.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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When asked why Bagnaia didn\u2019t slow the race down to bring third and fourth place within range, M\u00e1rquez (a \u201cVIP spectator for that nice battle!\u201d) suggested that, \u201cThe difference between [the two leaders] and the others was huge today. Bastianini finished 10 seconds behind Pecco!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Really, there were two races.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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Bagnaia, when asked the same question, rejected such tactics. \u201cI\u2019m not the type of guy that wants to be rude outside of the track, and needs to be rude on the track, and aggressive, pushing out, being the one who doesn\u2019t respect my rivals.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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If all goes as planned, the championship will be decided in Barcelona in two weeks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Francesco<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Riders teach each other. This one brakes wonderfully, that one finds exit grip to accelerate. Differences focus the learning process until just two or three riders break free of the pack to race at their own bootstrap level. That\u2019s what we saw this weekend between point leader\u00a0Jorge Mart\u00edn\u00a0(Pramac Ducati) and two-time World Champion\u00a0Francesco Bagnaia\u00a0(factory Ducati), […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2767,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ.avif",1440,900,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-150x150.avif",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-300x188.avif",300,188,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-768x480.avif",768,480,true],"large":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-1024x640.avif",1024,640,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ.avif",1440,900,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ.avif",1440,900,false],"jnews-360x180":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-360x180.avif",360,180,true],"jnews-750x375":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-750x375.avif",750,375,true],"jnews-1140x570":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-1140x570.avif",1140,570,true],"jnews-120x86":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-120x86.avif",120,86,true],"jnews-350x250":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-350x250.avif",350,250,true],"jnews-750x536":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-750x536.avif",750,536,true],"jnews-1140x815":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-1140x815.avif",1140,815,true],"jnews-360x504":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-360x504.avif",360,504,true],"jnews-75x75":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-75x75.avif",75,75,true],"jnews-350x350":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-350x350.avif",350,350,true],"jnews-featured-750":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-750x469.avif",750,469,true],"jnews-featured-1140":["https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ-1140x713.avif",1140,713,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"Newssoccer","author_link":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/?author=1"},"category_info":"Blog<\/a>","tag_info":"Blog","comment_count":"0","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/IIQGF3Y64NFRDH3O5KNZXXVGJQ.avif","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2766"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2766\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2768,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2766\/revisions\/2768"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssoccer.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}