Álvaro Bautista returns to MotoGP next week as a Ducati wildcard in the Malaysian GP. The rider has dominated the World Superbike Championship, but he will find a premier class very different from the one he knew before leaving at the end of 2018. There are no expectations for results, but that won’t stop him from fighting at the top if he has the chance.
In an interview with GPOne.com, the Spanish rider reiterated that this will be a race to have fun and do the best possible job: ‘Sepang is a bonus for me. I hope to have a good feeling with the bike, work well throughout the weekend, and have fun. I have no expectations in terms of results. I will try to do the best I can and enjoy the track, which is beautiful, and I miss it because we haven’t raced there’.
Although he doesn’t expect results, Bautista admitted that he won’t pass up the opportunity to fight at the top if he has a chance: ‘I’m not worried about the idea of being able to be in the group of the best. The level is very high, and I would sign up now to be in that situation! However, I imagine that if I found myself in that situation, the important thing would be not to make a mess. If I could win both races, I would win both; otherwise, no. We’ll see what happens. I’m certainly happy to be in that weekend; they are fighting for the championship, and it will be a very good race to watch’.