Bagnaia annoyed by persistent lack of rhythm in Sprint

Bagnaia, who started third on the grid for this Spanish GP Sprint, finished in the same position. However, Álex Márquez, who started behind him on the Ducati Gresini, quickly managed to overtake the Italian rider, who was once again powerless over the short distance of Saturday's race. The #63, initially taken aback but optimistic in the early rounds, showed some irritation at a scenario that keeps repeating itself. In the five Sprints contested this season, Marc Márquez has won each time ahead of his brother Álex.

With Saturday's races being held on half a tank, due to the race distance being half that of Sunday's, Bagnaia is experiencing tire overheating issues. He is therefore constantly having to yo-yo his pace to avoid overheating the front tires and risking a crash that would further hamper his championship standings. His teammate Marc Márquez currently holds a 31-point lead ahead of Sunday's Spanish GP.

"I feel a bittersweet feeling. It's always the same thing, I start in a position and I get stuck there.", he explained to the official website of the MotoGP. "Every time I try to get closer to the rider in front, I start to struggle with the tires, and I have to ease off a little bit. That's how things are at the moment, and we really need to figure out what's going on."

While Bagnaia knows he'll have a chance to take revenge this Sunday, this lack of consistent pace on Saturday leaves him perplexed. With eleven Grand Prix wins in 2024, the Italian knows the importance of sprints all too well, as it was thanks to them that Jorge Martín snatched the MotoGP title from him at the final round last year.

"Honestly, I always do the same thing, I approach races the same way, but in Sprints I can't be as competitive as I would like. I know I can fight this Sunday, but it's not enough for me, because I also want to improve on Saturdays."

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