Bezzecchi Reveals Brake Pad Issue Nearly Led to Catastrophic Collision with Bagnaia in Mandalika Sprint

Marco Bezzecchi reveals the near-mishap that Bagnaia faced during the Mandalika sprint: "I was completely taken by surprise."

Marco Bezzecchi explained that brake pad knock-back nearly caused a significant incident with Francesco Bagnaia during the MotoGP Indonesian Grand Prix sprint.

The VR46 racer was competing for the lead during the first half of the sprint race after reclaiming second position from Pedro Acosta in the initial laps.

Bezzecchi's chances of finishing on the podium disappeared when he misjudged his braking at Turn 10 during the seventh lap of the 13-lap race, nearly taking out the lead rider, Bagnaia.

Narrow escape from disaster! 😱 Bez had a hair-raising moment where he ALMOST jeopardized both his and @PeccoBagnaia's #TissotSprint 😅 #IndonesianGP 🇮🇩 pic.twitter.com/0N1AK1wt6m— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) September 28, 2024

The gap between the two Ducatis was just inches when Bezzecchi veered off the track, but he managed to get back on and secured a fourth-place finish.

Bezzecchi mentioned that throughout the weekend at Mandalika, he felt vibrations on his GP23. However, during the sprint, these vibrations caused his brake pads to retract for the first time, which caught him off guard.

“That was a significant gamble,” Bezzecchi remarked about the incident involving Bagnaia.

“Frankly, it caught me off guard since I stumbled a bit while shifting directions just before the straightaway.

"However, over the weekend, to be frank, I approached it by doing one lap on, one lap off, one lap on for all the sessions. And it was consistently fine."

“During the sprint, my brake pads disengaged, which caused me to repeatedly brake and release."

"However, since I never encountered this problem over the weekend, it caught me completely off guard."

“So, I hit the brakes hard. Otherwise, I would have braked sooner and avoided the danger.”

"I was lucky to steer clear of trouble. It's disappointing, but finishing fourth is still a good outcome, and we have another chance tomorrow."

Bagnaia mentioned that he could hear Bezzecchi approaching the back of his factory Ducati and prepared himself for a collision.

"I first heard it, and then I saw it," the sprint champion explained.

"When I began to hear it, I started to assume the expression of someone who knew they were about to be struck."

“However, I noticed him coming from the outside; his reflexes were sharp. It's quite simple to lock the front in that situation, and it was a near miss.”

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