Max Bartolini has worked with Yamaha but continues to pay close attention to the competition and during the season, even before the Malaysian GP that resulted in Pecco Bagnaia’s crash, he was asked about the championship and about the two then-candidates for victory, and considered that both the Italian and Jorge Martín deserved to win, and in the end he chose the champion – at the time still to be decided – as the one who made the fewest mistakes. Regarding the duo, he sees both with great ability to lead for a long time.
The Japanese manufacturer’s technical director had spoken exclusively with Crash even before the fateful error that practically handed the championship to Martín, and it was in line with what was often said during the 2024 season and even by Bagnaia himself who considered that year as ‘the championship of mistakes’.
Indeed, and before his monumental mistake in the Sprint in Sepang, when he was leading, Bartolini looked at the candidates and at who he saw as the winner like this: ‘Honestly, they both deserve to win. They have been very fast for two years now. Clearly, in the end, it will be whoever makes the fewest mistakes. It’s a fair fight between two riders who are very, very good…’.
It almost seemed like a premonition then, since it was precisely because of the mistakes, the details that the championship was decided, since one rider – Bagnaia – even won more races but, equally, had mistakes at crucial moments.
‘They can win for many years. It’s a great battle, but honestly I don’t know who’s going to win!’, he said then (well) before the title was secured.
In the end it was Martín, as is known, who won and many voices in MotoGP praised Martín’s ability to grow throughout the year, especially when it comes to managing races and his emotions, he who was often an impetuous rider.