Jorge Lorenzo’s first win with Ducati came in Mugello, Ducati’s home race
In the aftermath of his first victory on a Ducati in MotoGP, Jorge Lorenzo is feeling great and everything could be going well for the three-time MotoGP champion, but his relationship with the Italian team is far from being the best.
So, now that he finally won, Lorenzo felt that there are somethings he needed to take off his chest.
Being one of the best paid riders in MotoGP, with Ducati reportedly paying him around 12 million euros each season, left Jorge Lorenzo with a lot of pressure to win on a Ducati coming from Yamaha. And that pressure continued to grow with every race he didn’t get the win, making a lot of people question Ducati and criticizing Jorge Lorenzo.
But he didn’t lose his confidence that he could win on the Desmosedici, and says that this first win could’ve come earlier than in Mugello
“I never gave up. I have a lot of pride and self-love. There were many difficult moments, but I always thought I could win with this bike. It’s just a pity that Ducati didn’t give me these parts sooner [for example a new fuel tank], because I’m sure that I would have earned a lot of podium finishes and maybe the first win would have arrived sooner”.
At the press conference after the race, Lorenzo continued to speak about the relationship he has with Ducati, and when asked if things will be different because of his victory in Mugello, the Spaniard makes sure to explain what will happen
“Unfortunately, it’s too late. I did not ride better because there was no pressure. If the parts that I had in this race had arrived in Jerez or six months sooner, the results would have arrived sooner. Gigi believed in me, but a bit late. If he had believed in me 100% before, maybe now I wouldn’t be saying that it’s too late to stay with Ducati”.
Although we don’t have yet the official words from Ducati confirming Jorge Lorenzo’s departure, these words from the Spanish rider are a clear sign that he won’t stay with the team from 2019 onwards.
Many believe he will be returning to Yamaha after the deal with Suzuki fell through – Suzuki decided to hire Joan Mir instead -, but there are still a lot of unknowns in this story: who’s going to be the Yamaha satellite team? Will Yamaha be willing to build a third factory spec M1 for Lorenzo? Will Lorenzo accept a deal to become a satellite rider and lose his factory rider status?
All these questions should get an answer very soon, and at the next MotoGP round in Barcelona, in two-week’s time, we’re probably going to see the official announcement of Jorge Lorenzo’s future.