Martin shrugs off penalty risk, Bagnaia ‘nobody likes this rule’
As a first offence, Martin’s race result was not affected in Thailand.
But, as reported, if Martin is below the specified minimums in any of the remaining six races (three Sprints and three GPs) he will now be hit with what could be a title deciding 3-second post-race time penalty.
With their margin for error now gone, Pramac is sure to pick conservative starting tyre pressures for Martin in the remaining rounds.
But since pressure fluctuates due to factors such as chasing or leading, not to mention the weather, picking the right pressure is a complicated task.
Seven other full-time riders have also breached the minimum since penalties were introduced seven rounds ago in Catalunya, with Aleix Espargaro the first to suffer the +3 penalty for his second breach, in Buriram.
The MotoGP rules require minimum tyre pressures, specified by Michelin for safety reasons, to be met for at least 33% of a Sprint race or 50% of a grand prix.
This is to allow for the fact that all riders start on relatively ‘cold’ tyres, and therefore below the specified pressure, which should then rise above the minimum once the tyres are up to racing speed.
But if the starting pressure is too high, and the pressure rises too far above the minimum, a rider will struggle for grip under braking and corner entry, a problem made worse by the heat and dirty air when following other bikes.
After an official warning, penalties then escalate to 3, 6 and 12 seconds for each subsequent offence.
“Yeah, we did this small mistake because for sure, you never want to go under,” Martin said of the official warning. “But at least I got the win and 25 points. So that was the most important thing.
“But my other wins [this year] were with normal pressure. We were so, so close to the limit [in Buriram]. I think we just have to work in the same style.”
While manipulating tyre pressure is largely out of a rider’s control during a race, Martin indicated he might deliberately sit in the hot air of another bike if he receives a low-pressure warning on his dash.
“Maybe if I have some [low pressure] warnings or whatever I will have to be a little bit on the slipstream. And that's it.”
That will be a simple option if he is not leading, but would prove complicated if he receives a dashboard warning after breaking clear out front…
Meanwhile, Bagnaia, whose advantage over Martin has been cut to just 13 points, is yet to use his ‘joker’ card, meaning the one official tyre pressure warning before penalties are applied.
That means the #1 can enjoy the performance benefits of a riskier starting pressure, safe in the knowledge that his race result will not change if he ends up being under for too long.
“We know perfectly how it can change [performance], being under the limit all the race, because you have a great advantage in terms of braking and entry,” Bagnaia said.
The Italian added that the heat in Malaysia means not having to worry about a pressure time penalty could be useful this weekend, but perhaps even more so in Qatar next weekend.
“For sure this race maybe is good to have this kind of [joker, warning still available], but I think in Qatar it could be could be better to try to have an advantage on that. Because it's cold. Humidity is quite high.
“But yeah, it can be a thing that can help us in some situations.”
Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean he likes the new 'real-time' tyre pressure rules, which are set to get even stricter next season.
“Nobody likes this rule, absolutely,” Bagnaia said. “[Starting with a higher pressure] can affect your riding style a lot and the safety is quite less, considering that if you are upper - like I was in Thailand - it's very, very, very easy to lose the front.
“But in any case, looks also that from next year, from the first offence, you are out [disqualified]. You lose the race.
“You don't know how a race will go. Maybe you start with the same pressure but in one moment, you have only 1.7 and it's not going up [to the 1.9 bar front minimum]. Or you could have it go to 2.2.
“So it's very difficult. My team is doing such an incredible job in terms of remaining constant with the pressure, but it's very difficult.”
Aleix Espargaro quipped that the only good news for Martin after his pressure warning is that he has the speed to win races by more than three seconds anyway.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
