Enea Bastianini without Ducati team orders at Thai MotoGP: “I have to do the maximum”

Enea Bastianini has third place in the MotoGP World Championship in his sights with three rounds to go in the 2024 season.

Entering the Thai Grand Prix this weekend, after which there will be only two rounds remaining, Bastianini is 14 points behind Marc Marquez after the Gresini Ducati rider’s victory in Australia one week ago.

Bastianini was only 13th in Thailand last year, but his physical condition in the Asian races following his crash in Barcelona last summer mean that 2023 is not an accurate source of information on which to judge where the Italian might find himself in this year’s edition of the Buriram race.

“The potential, we have to check,” Bastianini said ahead of the Thai Grand Prix.

“Last year, I suffered a lot, and we have to check better, with more support now. My physical condition during last year wasn’t so good during this period, but now I’m confident to improve and to do something more this year.

“We have seen that it’s very important the Friday, and tomorrow will be and important day for me. But, I’m ready.”

On the one hand, Bastianini’s equation for the rest of the season is simple, as he explained: “Probably, if I have more race wins I am third in the championship.”

However, the position of Bastianini’s factory Ducati teammate, Francesco Bagnaia, in the championship (currently Bagnaia is in second place in the riders’ standings, 20 points behind Jorge Martin) means that he could be called on by the Ducati Lenovo Team to help Bagnaia to his third straight MotoGP title.

Bastianini, though, says he’s had “Nothing,” in the way of team orders from Ducati ahead of this weekend’s Thai race.

Thinking about the upcoming races in Sepang and Valencia, Bastianini also had a simple perspective.

“Well, Sepang is one of my favourite tracks,” he said. “We know that, and also in the past I was fast there.

“Valencia, it’s not my favourite track, that one. Here [Buriram], I don’t know. I’m without expectations for this Grand Prix.

“I have to do the maximum, this is true, because I can reach the third position in the championship and I want to try to do it.”

Also complicating Bastianini’s view of this weekend is the story of his Australian Grand Prix.

At Phillip Island last weekend, Bastianini finished third in the Sprint, but was only fifth in the Grand Prix, 13 seconds off the win.

After the race, Bastianini complained of a poor feeling with the front end of his Desmosedici GP24 which, even four days on, he is still unable to explain.

“We have to speak now about this,” Bastianini said on Thursday in Thailand.

“I don’t know more than the Sunday of Phillip Island, and it’s important to understand what happened.

“But, it has been strange because the bike was the same as the morning, and in the morning my feeling was so nice.

“For the race, it was totally different, like as if I was without traction. This was a bit strange.”