Marc Marquez answers whether Francesco Bagnaia’s struggles will ‘distract’ Ducati’s 2026 development

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Marc Marquez will be looking to defend his MotoGP crown in 2026, but Ducati face a dilemma with their development of the GP26.

Marquez has dominated the 2025 season on the GP25, winning 25 races, including Sprints, and wrapping up the championship by Motegi. The Spaniard has adapted to the bike seamlessly, as has always been the case throughout his career.

But it is clear that the GP25 has been a regression on its predecessor, with Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Di Giannantonio struggling to find the same feeling as Marquez. The former has been very vocal about his woes on the bike throughout the season.

Constantly complaining about the front end and in braking, Bagnaia has demanded answers from Ducati after he was last on track at Mandalika. It has prompted speculation about the Italian’s bike and what it could mean for 2026.

Marc Marquez is at ‘peace of mind’ over what Ducati engineers have told him about the GP26

Bagnaia gave Ducati an ‘ultimatum’ to give him the GP24, which he won 11 races with last year. Luigi Dall’Igna’s ‘ego’ prevented Bagnaia from switching bikes, as it would indicate that the latest Desmosedici is a downgrade.

But the Borgo Panigale outfit gave in as Bagnaia ran with GP24 parts at the Misano test and in the last two races. While it gave him victory at Motegi, he was running almost two seconds slower than the leaders at Mandalika.

While Bagnaia’s head is ‘falling off’ at Ducati, as he cannot find a consistent solution to his problems, Marquez has enjoyed utter dominance in 2025. The contrasting performance levels from their riders give Ducati a headache when developing the GP26.

But speaking to Motorsport Espana, Marquez says that the ‘Bagnaia mess’ will not ‘distract’ the team with their development. He is assured by what his engineers are telling him behind the scenes.

“The Ducati engineers are very clear about it, and it gives me a lot of peace of mind about the path we need to take,” he explained.

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What path will Ducati take with Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia’s GP26?

Bagnaia will be desperate for the 2026 Ducati to be a significant improvement on the GP25. However, it is possible that things could get much worse for him.

The GP26 will be more tailored to Marquez, which could see the gap ‘widen further’ between the Ducati riders. Bagnaia is 271 points behind his teammate with four races to go in 2025.

Reports have stated that the GP26 will be an ‘upgraded’ GP24, which should delight Bagnaia. In theory, there is no excuse for the Italian to underperform if he is getting the parts that are more suited to his riding style.

But he will face huge competition, as Alex Marquez will receive factory machinery in 2026. The Gresini rider is 88 points ahead of Bagnaia on the GP24 in 2025.