Francesco Bagnaia’s ‘honeymoon’ admission shows how much his 2024 MotoGP errors are haunting him

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Francesco Bagnaia may well have been the 2024 MotoGP champion without a series of costly errors. He was arguably the fastest rider over the course of the season.

But speed isn’t all it takes to win a title. And ultimately, Jorge Martin prevailed on his Pramac bike because he had the best campaign all-round.

Bagnaia failed to finish eight times, including five Sprints. Some of the incidents weren’t clear-cut mistakes, including his dramatic collision with Marc Marquez in Portugal, and his tangle with Brad Binder and Marco Bezzecchi in Jerez.

There was also a mechanical retirement in the Le Mans Sprint, but that was only after a qualifying accident forced him onto the backup bike. What will really sting, though, are the unforced errors.

Bagnaia threw away victory on the final lap of the Spain Sprint before blowing a potential podium at Silverstone. He also dropped out of the Emilia Romagna GP through an accident, and perhaps most decisively of all, he slid out of the Saturday race at Sepang.

Martin eventually won the title by 10 points, with Bagnaia’s clean sweep at the Solidarity GP not enough. Looking back through the year, it’s easy to see where he lost that margin.

Francesco Bagnaia couldn’t stop thinking about his costly mistakes in Jorge Martin title fight

Bagnaia is competing in the 100km dei Campioni, an event organised by MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi. Enea Bastianini, Pedro Acosta and Bezzecchi are also in attendance.

It was there that Bagnaia spoke to Sky Italy, who asked him about the season ahead. He’s anticipating renewed competition from the other manufacturers after Ducati’s dominance continued in 2024.

He also reflected on 2024 and admitted that he must raise his levels. He spent part of the off-season on his honeymoon after marrying partner Domizia Castagnini back in July.

But he still hasn’t overcome the frustration of his season-defining blunders. Some would see that as evidence of a champion’s mentality, but it’s clearly a psychological obstacle to clear heading into 2025.

“Next year will be fun but the competition is getting higher and higher between Aprilia, KTM, Honda and Yamaha,” Bagnaia said. “Last year’s victories can be replicated but we must always do better. I thought about the mistakes even on my honeymoon.”

Francesco Bagnaia explains why Ducati are weaker ahead of 2025 MotoGP season

Bagnaia admits he gave off ‘bad vibes’ earlier in his Ducati career because he was visibly nervous. But it will be easy for that anxiety to creep in next year when he finds himself in high-pressure situations.

Martin doesn’t expect to fight for the 2025 title after joining Aprilia, but Bagnaia could go head-to-head with new teammate Marquez. No rider on the current grid can match the Spaniard for experience in the biggest moments.

Bagnaia is ruing the loss of Pramac, who have joined the Yamaha stable for the coming season. Ducati bikes may no longer be able to monopolise the podium, potentially changing the title landscape.

The Italian team will launch their new bike on 20 January. It will make its debut at the Thailand Grand Prix on 2 March.