Marco Bezzecchi
Francesco Bagnaia’s misery at Ducati continued at the Australian Grand Prix as he failed to score points for the second race in a row.
The Italian looked to have made a breakthrough with his GP25 at Motegi, claiming a double victory. However, he crashed out from last place at Mandalika with the same machine.
Bagnaia is demanding answers from Ducati amid his ‘strange’ fluctuations in form. Rumours of a dispute between the two parties will not help matters as they seek to find solutions.
With Marc Marquez absent from the Australian Grand Prix through injury, it presented an opportunity for his teammate to score a strong result. But Bagnaia felt extra attention from engines would not benefit him, and he would be proved right.
Francesco Bagnaia suffered from ‘complicated’ issue in braking and corner entry before crashing at Phillip Island
Davide Tardozzi backed Bagnaia for a podium at Phillip Island, but the Italian could only manage 11th in qualifying. His Sprint woes in 2025 continued as he finished 19th, only beating his teammate and test rider Michele Pirro.
The Ducati rider had a torrid start to Sunday’s race as he fell as low as 18th. But at the halfway point, the 28-year-old began displaying a pace that only race winner Raul Fernandez was beating as he climbed to 12th.
But with four laps to go, Bagnaia crashed at the Siberia corner. Speaking to Sky Sport Italia after the race, he explained that he could not brake or enter corners the way he had hoped, making his life ‘complicated’.
“In the warm-up, we did some tests that were pretty disastrous; it was impossible to ride,” he said. “We went in the opposite direction, and that was definitely positive because at least I could push a little harder.
“I was really at the limit, but unfortunately, I can’t brake and enter the corners as I’d like, and that makes my life much more complicated.
“At least being able to push a little harder, seeing that I can catch up with the riders in front without having the slightest chance like yesterday or in Indonesia, is definitely something positive.
“I don’t know if it could be positive for Malaysia, which is a bit of a different track, but I just hope to get there and have a good feeling.”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Francesco Bagnaia from net worth to race number
Fabio Di Giannantonio just proved that Francesco Bagnaia’s problems run deeper than the bike
The two-time MotoGP champion’s problems in 2025 are confusing to say the least, especially so soon after claiming a dominant win at Motegi. Pol Espargaro says Bagnaia’s problems run deeper than the bike, and Fabio Di Giannantonio just proved that theory correct.
The VR46 rider finished second at Phillip Island and ran close to challenging Fernandez for the win in the closing stages. Di Giannantonio proved that the GP25 had the pace to perform as he finished as the highest-ranked Ducati rider.
This will only create more headaches for the Borgo Panigale outfit as they try to work out what is going wrong with their factory rider. Mat Oxley expects ‘tough’ meetings between Bagnaia and Ducati as his woes continue.
Pirro says his ‘goal’ is to help Bagnaia until the end of the season. It is clear that the test rider and Ducati have a lot of work to do in the final three races, as Marco Bezzecchi leapfrogs him for P3 in the standings.
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