Bastianini sinks in Brazil, unclassified: the reason for the slump is "strange"

The worst in MotoGP pre-qualifying and very bitter: Bastianini hopes the KTM Tech3 team can find solutions for the rest of the weekend in Brazil.

It was a complicated Friday for Enea Bastianini at the Autódromo Internacional de Goiânia–Ayrton Senna. After the 11th time in a wet FP1, he collapsed in the afternoon Practice. With a gap of 4.706s from leader Johann Zarco, his lap was the worst in MotoGP and he appears as “unclassified” in the official standings, because he did not set a time at least equal to 105% of the fastest rider’s time in the session.

Even though he already had some issues riding the KTM RC16 in Thailand, the rider from Rimini did not expect to find himself in such a situation in Brazil. In the mixed conditions encountered in pre-qualifying he had a terrible feeling and couldn’t set a decent time. A real pity to see him struggle like this.

Bastianini joined the list of MotoGP riders who liked the layout of the Goiânia circuit, but he had major problems related to the front end of his RC16: "We spent the morning trying to learn the track. It’s fun to ride, really compact, but enjoyable. In the afternoon, though, I couldn’t push, the bike’s front end felt light, which was strange. It was the first time it happened to me, so we need to understand what occurred, but we’ll check all the data to solve the problem and we’ll improve."

The KTM Tech3 team immediately got to work to try to find solutions to the issues the Romagna rider encountered, and it will be interesting to see if there will be major steps forward today. Also because it seems impossible to do worse than what we saw in Practice. We’ll see what conditions the riders will face.

In any case, having a sufficiently solid front end is crucial for Bastianini. Even though moving from Ducati to KTM forced him to adapt and make some changes, his riding style relies heavily on the front: without feel, he struggles and everything becomes more complicated.