Danilo Petrucci: I didn’t enjoy riding anymore

Danilo Petrucci claims that his last year in MotoGP left him “tired of the constant strain” and “without the feeling of having fun,” which he regained by competing in the Dakar Rally.

The ‘constant pressure’ of MotoGP, according to Danilo Petrucci, was a major factor in his choice to retire from the race.

Petrucci won two MotoGP races and competed in the premier class for 10 years, six of them with Ducati.

The highly affable Italian, though, was unable to make a significant impact after switching from Ducati to Tech3 KTM for the 2021 season, accumulating only three top ten results.

This wasn’t so much a comment on Petrucci as it was on KTM, who fell behind in comparison to 2020.

Despite this, Petrucci was looking for a new challenge after his one and only season aboard an RC16, which he found in the 2022 Dakar Rally.

Despite having mechanical troubles on several occasions, Petrucci wass\ the first rider in history to win a MotoGP race and a Dakar stage when he sensationally won stage five.

“I had gotten tired of the constant pressure you face in MotoGP. I didn’t get the feeling of having fun riding bikes anymore, and I believed I could get that back in the Dakar,” Petrucci told his race leather manufacturer REV’IT! in an exclusive interview. 

“But of course, I knew it was going to be a challenge with so little time between the end of the MotoGP season and the start of the Dakar Rally. 

“I had had a long and very nice career in MotoGP, but lately, I hadn’t been enjoying it as much as I used to. 

“MotoGP is really only fun when you’re able to fight for the podium. This new move came at just right time. 

“I needed something different altogether to try and find a nice balance between performance and pleasure.”

Petrucci, who joined the Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Team previous month after competing in the Dakar Rally, is getting ready for his maiden season in MotoAmerica.

Petrucci, who hasn’t ruled out a return to global title racing as part of a wildcard participation in WorldSBK in 2021, is hopeful that his choice to join the US series, which another former MotoGP rider Loris Baz did in 2021, would pay off like the Dakar.

“With the Dakar Rally, I felt like I made the right decision,” Petrucci continued, “and maybe it will be the same for racing in MotoAmerica.”

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Danilo Petrucci, Ducati, Moto, MotoAmerica, Motocross, MotoGP, Racing