Author: Luca Ciarallo

Just a few kilometers separate Maranello from Borgo Panigale. Two symbolic places of the Motor Valley of Emilia-Romagna, which yesterday climbed the highest steps of the F1 and MotoGP podium.

In Melbourne, Charles Leclerc dominated the Australian Grand Prix. While in Austin, Texas, Enea Bastianini once again put the Ducati of the Gresini Racing team ahead of everyone. 

Ferrari strikes again

The Scuderia Ferrari won the Australian Grand Prix for the tenth time. Bringing the Maranello marque to the top step of the podium was Charles Leclerc, at his second success of the season, the fourth of his career, and in Ferrari, like Eddie Irvine, Clay Regazzoni and John Surtees. The Monegasque dominated the Albert Park race for all 58 laps in the program, also bringing home the fastest lap. The only regret of the day was Carlos Sainz’s retirement on the second lap due to an off-track at turn 11, which came after a difficult start from ninth position.

The Australian race, on a track still different from Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, confirmed for the third time in as many races the goodness of the work done at Maranello: the F1-75 proved to be versatile to the adjustments dictated by the different characteristics of the circuits and made Charles feel at ease right from the start.

Bastianini again!

Good start, first part of the race in “management” behind Miller and Martin and second part of the race in Bastianini’s style: frantic pace and solo finish under the checkered flag in Texas. This brings to two the number 23’s victories (out of 4) and he becomes the leader of the general classification with 5 points on Rins and 11 on Espargaró.

The factory Ducatis of Jack Miller and Pecco Bagnaia finished respectively in third and fifth position. For the Australian it’s the first podium of the 2022 season, author of an excellent race, which saw him in the lead for almost all of its duration.

Pecco, after a good start that saw him hooked to the first ones in fourth position, was not able to stay in the group fighting for the podium.

The Misano Grand Prix Truck 2022 returns to its usual spring appointment at Misano World Circuit on 21 and 22 May. After the forced stop in 2020 due to the Covid and the restart last year with over 10 thousand fans, the expectation is for a return to the past near 40 thousand people.

It will be the occasion to celebrate the 30th birthday of the Goodyear FIA European Truck Racing Championship at Misano World Circuit. In fact, it was in 1992 that the first edition of the spectacular race on the track of the so-called ‘road bisons’ took place. Misano Grand Prix Truck has by now consolidated its value also in terms of economic profile for the induced activities on the territory, measured before Covid in 14 million euros.

The 2022 championship starts from the Motor Valley

In addition to being the only event in Italy of the prestigious championship, the event at Misano World Circuit will be the first round of the season, therefore particularly awaited, after the official tests at the beginning of April at the Nurburgring in Germany. It will start from the Motor Valley, therefore, the hunt for the title won in 2021 by the Hungarian Norbert Kiss. The minimum weight of the trucks on the track is 53 quintals, the speed is limited by regulation to 160 km/h, but they could reach over 200 km/h. The formula includes four races for each weekend and a reversal, in race 2 and 4, of the first eight positions of the order of arrival of the previous races,

Also this year there will be some great novelties in the participation of women on the track driving the trucks. Emma Mäkinen, Finnish of Ice Racing, will be on track with Team Schwabentruck, which competes with Iveco S-WAY R trucks. She will be paired with Steffi Halm, now a regular presence on the grid, for an all-female team.

Emma, 24, is the daughter of Mika Mäkinen, a truck driver who also raced for several years in the European Championship; she has been driving fast vehicles since she was 15, has raced in touring cars and won a National Endurance Cup.

Related events

In the paddock the commercial area will be back, where the community of truckers can meet the new models presented by the manufacturers, as well as the products of the companies in the trucking industry. Areas with entertainment and music to create the usual festive atmosphere.

The third successful element of the Misano Grand Prix Truck is the gathering of decorated trucks. This year it will return to the historical number of 200 vehicles, coming from all over Europe.

Misano Grand Prix Truck is also accompanied by the media partnership with Trasportare Oggi and Vado e Torno, leaders in information and communication in the world of transport and logistics. Test drives will be offered on the international track with vehicles made available by the manufacturers, to which others will also be added and outside the circuit.

Tickets

While the official poster is ready, the pre-sale is already active on the website misanocircuit.com and on the TicketOne platform, with the proposal of a round ticket that includes access to the grandstand, the sports and commercial area in the paddock and access to the MWC Square with all its proposals and special initiatives.

Scuderia Ferrari’s 2022 season has got off to the best possible start, with Charles Leclerc leading team-mate Carlos Sainz across the line to record the team’s 85th one-two finish in Formula 1. This was the Maranello squad’s 239th win and Charles’ third after those in Belgium and Italy in 2019. He drove a perfect race, securing the first hat trick of his career, namely pole position, fastest race lap and the win. Carlos took the chequered flag in second place to record his fifth podium with the Scuderia, his seventh in total in Formula 1.

The race

Leclerc drove an almost perfect race, as he fought off several attacks from Max Verstappen, after the Dutchman went for the undercut following the first pit stop, between laps 16 and 19. The team’s engineers and mechanics also played a key role in the win. The team opted to line up on new Soft tyres, banking on the Monegasque’s excellent starting ability. He showed that again today, pushing hard in the F1-75 over the first stint. The mechanics produced an impeccable performance at both pit stops, especially Leclerc’s second one, which allowed him to pull out precious tenths of a second over Verstappen to put him out of reach of a second attempt at the undercut by the reigning champion.

When the Safety Car came out on lap 45 after Pierre Gasly stopped on track, the team decided to change Charles’ tyres so that he could fend off any potential attack from Verstappen. At the restart, Carlos, who had not felt completely comfortable in the car all weekend, still managed to pass the Dutchman on track before his retirement, thus rounding off an unforgettable weekend for the Scuderia in Bahrain. Charles heads the Drivers’ classification for the first time in his career.

Charles Leclerc #16
Coming into this season, we knew we would be in a better position than we have been for the past two years, but we didn’t know exactly where we would stand. To be back on top with a car that is capable of winning feels incredible. A huge thank you to our whole team, you’ve done an amazing job and this victory is for all of you.
The race was tough and I gave it my all. Whenever I had a bit of margin behind me, I felt in control of the race and was managing the gap well. But after the first stop, things became more tricky. Max challenged me three times and I had to position myself in the right way to reclaim my position each time he passed me. Once the Safety Car came out, we lost the gap we had created and had to start again from zero. I knew I had to do the best restart possible and I am glad I got the job done well.
Car development will be more significant than in previous years and we have to stay on top of our game. As for this weekend – we did everything right. Pole, fastest lap, the victory and second place for our team. Forza Ferrari!

Carlos Sainz #55
This is definitely a day to celebrate for the entire team. Starting the season with a 1-2 is the perfect reward for the tireless work they have done over the last two years and congrats to Charles on a solid win.
We  also want to share our joy with all our tifosi around the world because we always felt their support even when we were not fighting at the top.
For me, I’m very happy with the result but I’m not particularly happy with my race. It was probably one of the hardest ones since I joined Ferrari. I wasn’t feeling at home with the car and we need to understand why. But today it’s time to celebrate this amazing result all together. The great effort to bring Ferrari back to the top, where it belongs, has paid off today and everyone deserves to enjoy it. We’ll keep pushing next week in Saudi. Forza Ferrari!

Mattia Binotto
Team Principal
I am very happy with this result, as our race today shows how well this team has worked over the past two years in Maranello. Personally, I have always had faith in them. They have worked as a united group and reacted to the difficulties we encountered. It’s nice to see we are once again battling for first place, which is our goal for this season.
To win in Formula 1, you have to do everything perfectly and today we did just that and that goes for everyone, the drivers, the F1-75, the engineers with the strategy and the mechanics,who were impeccable at the pit stops. Seeing the way the team was able to make the most of every opportunity fills me with pride.
Tonight, I wanted to go up on the podium to collect the Constructors’ trophy because I felt it was the best way to represent the whole team, back home and here in Bahrain. I have to admit it was an emotional moment. I am also thinking of the fans who have always supported us, even when things were a bit tricky and I admit I can’t wait to get to Imola to race in front of them.

Gallery

The MotoGP Grand Prix of Aragón, held this afternoon at the MotorLand Aragón in Alcañiz, ended with an extraordinary victory for Pecco Bagnaia, who secured his first MotoGP success. The Ducati Lenovo Team rider, who took pole position yesterday (the 50th premier class pole for Ducati) and first also this morning in the warm-up, produced a masterpiece today. As he took the lead after the start, Pecco held on to it from start to finish and held off Marc Márquez, who was always close to his Desmosedici GP 21.

With three laps to go, the Spanish rider started to attack Bagnaia, who could respond to them, remaining firmly in the lead. After a fierce duel on the last lap, the rider of the Bologna-based squad was finally able to get the better of Márquez, crossing the finish line in the first place with a gap of 673 thousandths on his opponent.



Second, in qualifying, Jack Miller closed the thirteenth round of the 2021 MotoGP season in fifth place. Third, after the first lap, the Australian rider tried to follow his teammate and the Spaniard, but a problem towards the second part of the race led him to make a mistake. Miller went wide and was passed by Mir and Aleix Espargaro, finishing in fifth place, where he eventually crossed the line.



After today’s race, Bagnaia remains second in the overall standings, 53 points behind leader Quartararo, while Miller is fifth, 85 points off the top of the standings. Ducati returns to the top of the manufacturer’s standings, while the Ducati Lenovo Team is second in the teams’ standings.

Statements

Francesco Bagnaia (#63 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 1th

“Today’s victory was really incredible. We knew we were strong, but also that Marc Márquez is particularly fast on this track. When I took the lead, I tried to push right away because I knew he was behind. The last four laps were tough, and I couldn’t wait for the race to finish because he kept passing me. In the end, we did it, and it is an indescribable emotion. Today’s win was not taken for granted: I came here with lots of questions, as I had never managed to be fast and finish the race in the points since 2019 until now at the MotorLand. Instead, this year, since FP1, everything has been perfect. I’m thrilled.”

Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)

“It was an incredible race, and I’m so excited. Pecco was amazing! He really did a masterpiece, riding flawlessly and beating a Marc Márquez who showed his form today. This first win was crucial for Pecco, and he deserves it, as do all the guys at Ducati Corse who have worked so hard to achieve this victory. I’m really happy”.