Last weekend, all eyes of the MotoGP world were completely focused upon the British Grand Prix which was held at Silverstone. They all played the role of witness to a spectacular performance from MotoGP championship leader Valentino Rossi taking the chequered flag and storming to his first race victory in four outings. This victory was his fourth of the season as arguably his most important yet as it separated himself and championship rival, Jorge Lorenzo, in the standings by twelve points.
Rossi wasn't the only Italian turning heads however as Pramac Racing's Danilo Petrucci took advantage of the rain-soaked British Grand Prix and took his first ever podium placed finish in MotoGP. Yes, history was made at Silverstone and whilst all his fans were jubilant for him, Petrucci was by far the most delighted and he couldn't contain his happiness.
For those who know little about Petrucci, prior to this performance, Petrucci's highest finish all season was ninth place on three occasions. He is just 24-years-old and has been racing in the sport for quite some time now. In fact, he has made 62 starts over the four seasons he has spent in MotoGP. He also has more points now, 83, than he has over the last three seasons combined.
Following such an increase in performance and his first ever official MotoGP podium, is this young star now Italy's next big thing?
For years now, Valentino Rossi has been the standard bearer in MotoGP, not just for Italy, but for almost everyone. With Rossi reaching his late thirties, many riders are looking to take over his spot as Italy's top rider and many feel following a performance like that, Petrucci could be the man to do it. He took advantage of drastic weather conditions and whilst others crashed out, like World Champion Marc Marquez, Petrucci capitalised. This is the kind of form Rossi displayed as a youngster and still shows today, this is why he won the British Grand Prix last weekend. He adapted to the changing situations and reaped the rewards, Petrucci just followed suit.
Petrucci has also been very consistent this term. He has finished every single race within the points and as the season has progressed, he has gradually improved upon results. Consistency is one of the keys to success in MotoGP and without consistency, you won't get the results you need to be able to remain competitive over the duration of a season. Just imagine if Petrucci had a faster motor-cycle underneath him, he would be challenging for podiums regularly.
Petrucci is still at a young age of just 24-years-old. This means he has years of progression ahead of him, he is yet to reach his peak and as soon as he matures more as a racer, he will become smarter and more equipped and his experience will grow at the same time. This can only mean positive things for the future of Danilo Petrucci.
On the other hand, whilst his future is bright, there are still other highly competitive Italians vying for the number one Italian MotoGP spot once Rossi has hung up his gloves. Those would be the Ducati pairing of Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone. Having not been as competitive in previous seasons, it's been very refreshing for the Ducati boys to be frequently achieving podiums in 2015 and has brought a smile to Ducati faces. Dovizioso has appeared on the podium five times this term with three-second places in the first three races whilst Iannone occupies fourth place in the championship. They currently have a better ride underneath them and competitively race with Rossi on a regular basis.
Also, if Petrucci remains with Pramac Racing for the next few seasons, Petrucci more than likely won't see his first race victory anytime soon. Therefore, he needs to get the maximum possible out of his current motorcycle and show he can regularly achieve strong points paying finishes as opposed to lingering around the edges of the top ten picture. This will show Petrucci has the potential to perform better if given a better motorcycle and who knows, race victories may even be possible if given the chance to ride for Movistar Yamaha or Repsol Honda.
That first ever podium placed finish may well have just been a fluke too. The weather conditions were unpredictable, they didn't reflect the true pace of the riders and some riders couldn't cope with the rain thrown at them at Silverstone. In order to prove his doubters wrong, Petrucci must at least have the crowd feel like he will attempt to challenge for the podium again over the next few races otherwise the dream of being Italy's next big thing may as well be over now.
Whilst a first ever podium is impressive, particularly when riding for Pramac Racing, it did happen in wet conditions for Danilo Petrucci. Also, the fact that Andrea Iannone and Andrea Dovizioso are both from Italy and are much more competitive on a regular basis than Petrucci also makes this mountain a difficult one to climb for the 24-year-old. There are years left in his MotoGP career though so it can only grow from here.
