One of the most famous moments in MotoGP history, Rossi snatched victory from Yamaha team-mate Lorenzo at the last corner of the 2009 Catalan GP with a daring overtake.
In the 2023 Barcelona sprint, having faded from pole to eventual winner Aleix Espargaro, Bagnaia had to defend hard to keep the sister Aprilia of Vinales at bay.
Though Vinales got close, he was pipped to second by the reigning world champion by 0.051s.
“We need a bit more traction,” Bagnaia said after the sprint.
“We perfectly know that the Aprilia is very competitive in the first part of pick-up [of the throttle] and on the edge [of the tyre].
“So, we are working on it. It will not be easy because the gap to them is a bit high in this moment.
“Was fun [to battle with Vinales], honestly I was focused on trying to be perfect on every braking, trying to not give him any chance to put his bike in front of me.
“I was a bit scared to see something like Barcelona 2009, Vale and Lorenzo, so I was just trying to close all the lines and stop the bike a bit more.”
Source: Autosport