Marco Bezzecchi
Francesco Bagnaia has been suffering a difficult season at Ducati and will hope that things can turn around before the end of the year.
After being in MotoGP championship contention for the last four campaigns, Marc Marquez’s arrival as his teammate has derailed everything.
Not many would have predicted that Ducati’s superstar rider would drop so far off the boil in 2025, after winning 11 races in 2024.
The next crucial stage for Bagnaia will be over the winter, as his team retraces their steps and tries to find where they went wrong with the GP25.
Marquez’s ‘spectacular’ form has affected Bagnaia, and he looks to have lost confidence in his bike. The front end isn’t as obedient as it once was.
Bagnaia sounded exactly like Valentino Rossi when saying that Marquez could ride a tractor and still be fast recently. He’s very complimentary of his skills.
Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin developed a ‘very strong’ relationship before MotoGP
Bagnaia is ‘really raging’ at Ducati after having to accept that his teammate was far faster than him earlier in the season.
So far, Marquez has accumulated 19 wins from a possible 24, while his Italian rival has just one, earned from some fortunate circumstances at Americas Grand Prix.
Another rider who has been through hardship this year is reigning champion Jorge Martin. Bagnaia’s father revealed to Motosan how Martin and his son developed a ‘very strong’ bond back in 2015, when they were Moto3 teammates.
“I remember we were in Misano, I think, when Lele Martinelli, who had been the boss at Husqvarna, arrived. He called me and asked me if it was true that Pecco wouldn’t be racing with Sky the following year,” he said.
“And I told him it was true: ‘Something’s not right, but I’m not going to say what it is’. A minute later, Gino arrived and said, ‘What’s this about?’. I said yes, talk to VR. Three minutes later, we had everything sorted, and Pecco went to race with Jorge Martin.
“There was immediate chemistry between Pecco and Jorge, an incredible understanding, and in fact, they were very strong and have been very close and strong right from the start.”
Why Francesco Bagnaia should see a lot of Jorge Martin for the rest of 2025
Bagnaia was visibly furious with Ducati at the final race before MotoGP’s summer break, after suffering from some technical woes.
He finished just 12 seconds and four places ahead of the returning Martin, on a much-improved Aprilia bike.
When the Spaniard made his debut for them at the start of the season, the Noale-based manufacturer’s bike left a lot to be desired.
With the leadership of Marco Bezzecchi, they have managed to improve and are now in contention for a podium at most events. It’s very encouraging heading into 2026.
With Bagnaia competing for similar positions, it should mean that Martin sees a fair amount of him for the rest of 2025.
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