Ducati issues rider warning: ‘Don’t do stupid things’

No team orders at Duca🌟ti in title fight but one warning issued

Davide Tardozzi, Ducati Corse, MotoGP 2024
Davide Tardozzi, Ducati Corse, MotoGP 2024
© Gold and Goose

Ducati is seemingly carrying on with its no team orders policy in the 2024 MotoGP title battle finale, but has urged its stable “don’t do stupid🗹 things”.

Jorge Martin and Francesco Bagnaia head into next weekend’s season finale in Barꦛcelona split by 24 points, with the former needing💧 to outscore his rival by two to win the championship.

For weeks, Ducati riders have been asked about being give🐲n factory orders, with the Italian marque elect🍃ing against this.

One of the biggest issues Ducati faces in implement🔜ing any orders is the fact tha🌺t Martin and Bagnaia have been a clear step ahead of their rivals.

At the Malaysian GP, third-placed Enea Bastianini was seven seconds away from Martin and 10.4s awꦅay from team-mate Ba𝔉gnaia.

The two Ducati riders able to get into the lead group - Bastianini and Marc Marquez - have also got their own battle for third in the standings to consider, with the la⭕tter heading this by a point.

For Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi,🐽 he sees organising any factory orders as “very difficult” - but says the marque will continue to issue the same warning it has all year.

“It’s very difficult because Jorge and Pe൩cco are playing for number one, but the two riders who can help this situation one way or the other are M🐭arc and Enea,” he told TNT Sport.

“And ꧂they are playing for number three [in the championship]🌟.

“In the end, third ♛place in the championship is not bad for many reasons.

“So, I think it will be difficult to discuss something like that. On top of t💮hat, I like to let the riders be free to play for their own championship.

“[We say] what we’ve said already since the middle of the year: don’t do stupid things between you. We don’t 🦄want to have really bad [blood] or something like that between our top guys.”

The most famous example of Ducati team order𝓰s came in 2017, when Jorge L𝐆orenzo was twice issued a ‘mapping 8’ message to his dashboard as code to let team-mate Andrea Dovizioso through.

Whi🅷le Dovizioso ended up ahead of Lorenzo ♚at the Malaysian GP after this message was given, there was no compliance at the Valencia finale.

In the last two years, Ducati has also elected against issuing factory orders.
 

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