| French GP: the Ducati Lenovo Team prepares to tackle the fifth Grand Prix of the 2024 MotoGP season in Le Mans |
The fifth round of the 2024 MotoGP season will be held in France at the historic Le Mans circuit in the Sarthe region. Of the 36 editions of the French GP held so far (this year will be the 37th), Ducati has triumphed in the last four editions: in 2020 with Danilo Petrucci, in 2021 with Jack Miller, in 2022 with Enea Bastianini, and in 2023 with Marco Bezzecchi.
Following a thrilling success in the last round held in Spain two weeks ago, Francesco Bagnaia arrives in France intending to fight again for victory this weekend. After his win at Jerez, the reigning World Champion moved up to second in the overall standings and is now seventeen points behind leader and fellow Ducati rider Jorge Martín (Pramac Racing).
Teammate Enea Bastianini, on the other hand, is in third place in the World Championship, five points behind Pecco. Fifth in the Spanish GP, the Ducati Lenovo Team rider aims to return fighting for the podium at the French track that saw him score his third MotoGP victory in 2022.
After the first four rounds of the 2024 season, Ducati and the Ducati Lenovo Team lead the constructors' and the teams’ standings, respectively.
Francesco Bagnaia (#1, Ducati Lenovo Team) - 2nd (75 points)
"After the last race weekend at Jerez and the test, I arrive at Le Mans pretty confident. All the conditions are there for us to be fast right from the start. We have always been competitive in France, and even last year in the race, we had a good pace and were fighting for the win. Unfortunately, I was unlucky and had to retire due to a crash after being hit by another rider. The only big unknown, as always, will be the weather, but, in any case, we will work to be ready to face any conditions."
Enea Bastianini (#23, Ducati Lenovo Team) - 3rd (70 points)
"I'm happy to be back at Le Mans, where I couldn't race last year due to injury. It's definitely a friendly track since I managed to get a win there in 2022. After the Jerez test, I came home happy and satisfied: I am confident that what we tried will help us both here and in the next races. I can't wait to get on track with the goal of getting back into the fight for the podium”.
The Ducati Lenovo Team riders will take to the track on Friday, 10 May, at 10:45 local time (GMT +2.00) for the first free practice session of the French GP.
Circuit Information
Country: France
Name: Le Mans
Best Lap: : Bagnaia (Ducati) 1:31.778 (164,1 km/h) – 2022
Circuit Record: Bagnaia (Ducati), 1:30.450 (166,5 km/h) – 2022
Top Speed: B. Binder (KMT), 325,8 km/h – 2023
Track Length: 4.19 km
Sprint Race Distance: 13 laps (54.47 km)
Race Distance: 27 laps (113.13 km)
Corners: 14 (5 left, 9 right)
2023 Results
Podium: 1° Bezzecchi (Ducati); 2° Martín (Ducati), 3° Zarco (Ducati)
Pole Position: Bagnaia (Ducati) 1:30.705 (166 km/h)
Fastest Lap: Bezzecchi (Ducati) 1:31.885 (164 km/h)
Riders’ Information
Francesco Bagnaia
Bike: Desmosedici GP
Race Number: 1
GPs Started: 195 (90 x MotoGP, 36 x Moto2, 69 x Moto3)
First GP: Qatar 2019 (MotoGP), Qatar 2017 (Moto2), Qatar 2013 (Moto3)
Wins: 30 (20 MotoGP + 8 Moto2 + 2 Moto3)
Sprint Wins: 4
First GP Win: Aragón 2021 (MotoGP), Qatar 2018 (Moto2), Netherlands 2016 (Moto3)
Pole Positions: 25 (18 MotoGP + 6 Moto2 + 1 Moto3)
First Pole: Qatar 2021 (MotoGP), France 2018 (Moto2), Britain 2016 (Moto3)
World Titles: 3 (MotoGP 2023, MotoGP 2022, Moto2 2018)
Enea Bastianini
Bike: Desmosedici GP
Race Number: 23
GPs Started: 174 (53 x MotoGP, 33 x Moto2, 88 x Moto3)
First GP: Qatar 2021 (MotoGP), Qatar 2019 (Moto2), Qatar 2014 (Moto3)
Wins: 11 (5 MotoGP + 3 Moto2 + 3 Moto3)
First GP Win: Qatar 2022 (MotoGP), Andalucía 2020 (Moto2), San Marino 2015 (Moto3)
Pole Positions: 11 (2 MotoGP + 9 Moto3)
First Pole: Austria 2022 (MotoGP), Catalunya 2015 (Moto3)
World Titles: 1 (Moto2 2020)
Championship Information
Riders' Standings
Francesco Bagnaia (#1 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 2º (75 points)
Enea Bastianini (#23 Ducati Lenovo Team) - 3° (70 points)
Constructors' Standings
Ducati – 1º (133 points)
Teams' Standings
Ducati Lenovo Team – 1º (145 points) |
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