We just made all the incorrect decisions

Francesco Bagnaia suffered disappointment yet again this season as he didn’t even progress directly to the Q2 qualifying session following the official practice session on Friday afternoon.

Purely on pace, Bagnaia appeared to be in the mix throughout the entire session, however, he appeared to be in the pitlane at exactly the wrong time throughout the magic hour. He explained to the media exactly why he’s not in Q2 after the session.

“I’m not there because we completely missed the strategy,” explained the Italian. “I was in the box when the others were improving. Every time I entered [the pits], I was in the top 10.

“In the last moment, the only possibility to go in the top 10 [again] was to go with the medium rear [wet tyre]. But we decided to go with the soft. It was the incorrect strategy.”

‘Pecco’ added to his explanation, laying the blame squarely at Ducati’s door for his lack of results.

“Today we decided to try a thing that was too long to change [on the bike],” said Bagnaia. “We missed the moment where everybody did their fastest laptime.

“And then in the last part, I was seeing that it was better to go with the medium [wet tyre], but the technicians were too convinced to go with the soft. So I decided to go with their strategy. But it was incorrect.

“I think the potential to be in the top 10 was clear and it was there. We just made all the incorrect decisions.”

It hasn’t been an easy season for the two-time MotoGP champion, and he knows it. Bagnaia is struggling with the traction at the back of his bike and understands that putting himself on the back foot during a race weekend isn’t something he can easily recover from.

“Honestly, it’s already a complicated season,” admitted Bagnaia. “Where my feeling is not the best [on the bike]. If we complicate the situation even more, it can be a shame, like it was today.”