MotoGP: “Team orders”, the current bone of contention

After the Thai race, Johann Zarco commented “Ducati asked us not to steal points, if not for the win” and this led to an inevitable rumpus furore around the French rider, and also Ducati, the masters of team orders as they do all they can to secure the title with Bagnaia. A riders’ title that Ducati has not seen since way back in 2007 with Casey Stoner.

Realising that this achievement is well within reach (Bagnaia lies two points behind Quartararo with three races to go), Ducati is in a position to ask its riders not to hinder Bagnaia in the race, despite Pecco himself saying that he doesn't want team orders and prefers to try and score the title on his own merits.

It’s undeniable that the Ducati riders are more careful when close to Bagnaia in the race and the fact that Zarco didn’t try to pass #63 shows this, just as Bezzecchi had an opportunity at Motegi, sensing Pecco’s early difficulties.

 From “map 8” to Tardozzi and Dall’Igna’s “trips” to the various Ducati garages

Whether you like or not, team orders have always existed in motorsport, more so in Formula 1, whether veiled or not over the team radios (the famous “Fernando is faster than you” to Felipe Massa in Germany in 2010, or the board shown to Ferrari drivers Villeneuve and Pironi at Imola 82, a prelude to the Zolder disaster, to mention just two), and to a lesser degree in the world championship and WorldSBK.

As for MotoGP, and Ducati, how can we forget the famous “map 8” shown to Jorge Lorenzo at Valencia in 2017, instructing him to cede his position to Dovizioso who was fighting for the title with Marquez. A race that finished badly for Ducati when both riders crashed out within the space of a few laps, first Lorenzo and then Dovizioso.

This year, as we’ve said in the past, the question of team orders is catching on, with Ducati able to count on eight bikes on the grid, six of which are regularly in the top ten. In recent races, we’ve often seen Davide Tardozzi and Gigi Dall’Igna visiting the various pitwalls of the Ducati satellite team to “issue” the order not to hinder the title candidate.

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