Marc Marquez says Francesco Bagnaia is facing the same ‘doubt’ he had when he left Honda

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Francesco Bagnaia has become trapped in a cycle during the 2025 MotoGP season. He seems to arrive at each MotoGP weekend with a fresh sense of optimism, only to leave on Sunday feeling rather desolate.

This is the product of falling almost 200 points behind Ducati teammate Marc Marquez. Bagnaia has only won one race this season (after Marquez fell at the Americas GP), and he’s failed to score a podium in more than half of the 26 races (including Sprints).

Bagnaia has been waiting for Ducati to find a solution to his lack of feeling from the front-end under braking. But it doesn’t appear to be forthcoming.

Indeed, Luigi Dall’Igna believes Bagnaia’s problems are psychological. The two-time world champion may struggle to muster much enthusiasm for his first visit to Balaton Park, even if every rider theoretically starts from zero on a new circuit.

Marc Marquez tells Francesco Bagnaia he’s in a period of ‘transition’

In his media briefing before the race, Marquez was inevitably asked about Bagnaia. The unhappy 28-year-old had indicated that he was running out of patience with his team after the Austrian GP.

Some have since speculated that Bagnaia’s long-term Ducati future could be under threat. The timing of Fermin Aldeguer’s career-best second place felt significant in that regard.

But Marquez expects the Borgo Panigale outfit to rally around one of their greatest-ever riders. He puts his issues down to a small, confidence-induced loss at every corner.

The Spaniard has said that he left Honda for Gresini to prove he could win again after four injury-hit seasons. Bagnaia is facing that same psychological ‘transition’.

“That’s where our job comes in, to protect Pecco in this case, or the athlete, we won’t name names, from everything that is created around them,” Marquez said, via MARCA.

“Pecco has won two world championships for Ducati, he will continue with Ducati next year, Pecco still has a lot to give to Ducati.

“Simply put, when an athlete enters a downward spiral, whether they are a motorcycle rider or a striker, and suddenly things don’t work out, you start to lose confidence, you can’t score goals, and suddenly, from one day to the next, when you have the talent and you’ve done it before, you start to do well again.

“The same thing happens to MotoGP riders. When you lack confidence, you start losing three-hundredths, five-hundredths when braking. We’re talking about 50 thousandths of a second, which at the end of the lap adds up to two tenths.

• READ MORE: Jorge Lorenzo tells Francesco Bagnaia he’d be ‘more comfortable’ racing for Ducati rival as their ‘number one’

“And that’s enough to end up on the podium or in eighth place. Pecco is proving that he has speed, because otherwise he wouldn’t have had a Friday like the one in Austria.

“He just has to build up his confidence, like I did last year when I started with Ducati. You guys were pushing me for results and I said, ‘First I have to regain my confidence, I have to regenerate, revive, I have to trust myself again,’ because when you go through moments like these, you doubt yourself.

“Pecco is in that transition, but even so, despite all the drama, he’s third in the world championship, which, if you take me out of it, is 40 points behind second place, or I don’t know exactly.

“Obviously, in sport, you’re only as good as your last race or your last game, but you also have to understand the history he’s achieved with Ducati.”

Pecco Bagnaia hits out at the reaction to his tense Austria interview

Bagnaia has rowed back on his Red Bull Ring comments ahead of the Hungary weekend. He attributed them to the emotions running high immediately after the race.

He also feels the coverage since the race has been ‘inappropriate’. Marquez is one of several riders who have backed him to return to form.

Indeed, Jorge Martin is certain that Bagnaia is better than he’s shown in 2025. They went head-to-head for the title for two straight seasons.

If his poor form continues, he could soon surrender third place in the standings to a charging Marco Bezzecchi. But Bagnaia will soon be more focused on a reset in 2026 anyway.