Ducati may not have the money to fix ‘miserable’ Francesco Bagnaia’s biggest problem in 2025

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Francesco Bagnaia is now 72 points adrift of Marc Marquez in the riders’ standings after failing to score a point in his last two Grands Prix for the first time in 43 races.

Not since the second and third rounds of his debut title defence in the 2023 MotoGP season had Bagnaia failed to finish back-to-back events in the top-15 prior to this term’s French and British Grands Prix. He even stood on the rostrum at 34 of those 43 Grands Prix and won 18.

Bagnaia abandoned the race-winning strategy at Le Mans favoured by Johann Zarco, having also started the French GP on wet tyres just to change onto dry tyres after being hit by Enea Bastianini on Lap 1. He eventually finished in P16 and a lap down, as Marquez settled for P2.

Marquez also settled for P3 on another bleak day for his Ducati teammate at Silverstone last Sunday, as Bagnaia crashed out of the British GP. The 28-year-old lost the front of his bike at Luffield while P13 on L4, adding to his woes after Bagnaia fell to P6 in the Silverstone Sprint.

Francesco Bagnaia knows Ducati cannot change the front fork on his 2025 MotoGP bike

Bagnaia does not feel the Ducati GP25 suits his riding style, so the two-time MotoGP world champion accepts he needs to try and change his approach. The Italian also knows he must respond to Marquez’s results by improving his results, as Ducati cannot fix his biggest issue.

That is according to AS, which reports that Ducati designed their 2025 bike for a longer front fork, but it is making Bagnaia ‘miserable’. The new fork restricts the movement of the wheel and steering more than the one on their GP24, which the Italian knows he cannot return to.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Francesco Bagnaia from net worth to race number

The fork Ducati fitted on Bagnaia’s bike last year is incompatible with the GP25, so he has to try to get used to the new version. It is the root cause of Bagnaia’s problems adapting to the GP25, which Ducati would have to entirely redesign to now incorporate a shorter front fork.

Ducati cannot redesign the GP25 in its entirety to remove Bagnaia’s problems with the front fork due to regulatory and economic reasons, as well. He is also the exception to the rule, as Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio of VR46 do not struggle with the front fork like Bagnaia.

Even copying Ducati teammate Marquez’s set-up is not helping the 28-year-old to find a way to work with the new front fork. While Bagnaia has the same bike as the Spaniard, who now leads the standings on 196 points over Alex Marquez with 172, their styles are too dissimilar.

Marc Marquez will expect to stretch his lead over Pecco Bagnaia at the Aragon Grand Prix

Bagnaia will also know he must get on top of Ducati’s longer front fork for the GP25 quickly to keep Marquez within his potential reach in the championship standings. Marquez might not be winning every race anymore, but he is bringing home the points and Bagnaia is not.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Ducati from the MotoGP team’s riders to hierarchy

Marquez will also expect to build his lead over the Italian further at next weekend’s Aragon Grand Prix. The 32-year-old scored his first wins on a Ducati at last year’s meet after joining Gresini, as Marquez did the double with Aragon Sprint and Grand Prix glory last September.

The Cervera native also claimed pole for Gresini at the 2024 Aragon GP, where Bagnaia only finished the Sprint in P9 and 20.298 seconds behind Marquez. The Turin native also crashed with Alex Marquez on Lap 17/23 of the 2024 Aragon GP while trying an overtake at Turn 12.