Mat Oxley feels Ducati are set to give Francesco Bagnaia a ‘get out of jail’ card with 2026 decision

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Francesco Bagnaia of Ducati is preparing for what he hopes will be the final round of his misery, as he bids goodbye to the GP25 at the 2025 MotoGP Valencia Grand Prix.

The Desmosedici GP25 has tormented Bagnaia this year, with the two-time champion failing to achieve anywhere close to the type of results that the world knows he is capable of. Marc Marquez proved the bike’s potential by taking the title, but Bagnaia has never adjusted to it.

After 21/22 rounds, Bagnaia’s 288 points leave the Ducati racer 35 behind Aprilia rival Marco Bezzecchi in the fight for third place in the riders’ standings. Despite Marquez having to miss the past three rounds through injury, the Spaniard’s 545 points also leave him 257 better off.

Bagnaia’s misery has even hit a low now of late, as the 28-year-old has failed to finish five of the past six Grands Prix. The only time he took the chequered flag over that run came when Bagnaia won the Japanese Grand Prix to do the double after also winning the Motegi Sprint.

Ducati’s 2026 MotoGP bike will awaken Francesco Bagnaia from his ‘nightmare’

Bagnaia’s latest retirement during the Portuguese Grand Prix last week also emphasised one of his biggest problems with the Ducati GP25, having lost the front end without any warning at Turn 11. The Turin native simply fell out of fourth place as he tapped the brake on Lap 11.

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

But Mat Oxley believes Bagnaia is about to wake up from his “nightmare”, as Ducati will run a GP24 “in all but name” during the 2026 MotoGP season. He will sample the GP26 in post-season testing at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo on November 18 after this Sunday’s Valencia GP.

Oxley told Motor Sport Magazine: “The long trudge back to pitlane, shoulders slumped, head bowed. And yet, maybe there was just a glimmer of a smile behind his dark visor. Bagnaia is very nearly at the end of his 2025 nightmare

“Bagnaia will awake from his nightmare when he rolls out of Valencia pitlane to commence testing for the 2026 season aboard what will be, in all but name, a GP24.

“The one-day Valencia test doesn’t usually mean much, but it will be interesting to watch Bagnaia and VR46’s GP25 rider Fabio Di Giannantonio during their get-out-of-jail day.

“They will both be in heaven, instead of hell, riding motorcycles that do what they want them to do and keep them informed about what’s happening with the front tyre.”

Pecco Bagnaia will want to throw the Ducati GP25 in a bin after the Valencia Grand Prix

Ducati have run out of answers for Bagnaia’s problems in 2025, with Davide Tardozzi feeling the Italian’s woe lies in a lack of trust with the GP25. Theories have been touted all term for why, including Luigi Dall’Igna revealing Bagnaia’s issue with Ducati’s 2025 ride height device.

Ducati’s ride height device on the GP25 changed how the bike acts under braking compared to the GP24, on which Bagnaia lost out on the title to Jorge Martin by 10 points. Bagnaia got 11 Grand Prix wins, more than any rider, and seven Sprint wins aboard the GP24 last season.

Bagnaia will now be desperate for Ducati to make the GP26 more in line with the GP24 than the GP25, which he will want to throw in any bin as soon as he can once the chequered flag falls in Valencia this Sunday. His 2026 campaign then commences with testing next Tuesday.