What Davide Tardozzi told Nicolo Bulega after he called himself a ‘disaster’ on his Ducati debut

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Nicolo Bulega registered an excellent performance on debut at the Portugal Grand Prix to score one point for Ducati.

The 26-year-old is standing in for an injured Marc Marquez at the end of the MotoGP season, and will participate in the crucial post-season test at Valencia.

That means the Italian rider will be contributing to the development of Ducati’s bike for 2026, which needs to be a step up on the GP25, which has been a handful at times.

Bulega has switched from the World Superbike series, who use a Pirelli tyre, rather than the Michelin that MotoGP uses. The adjustment cannot be understated.

Bulega isn’t ‘enjoying’ replacing Marquez because he’s having to spend so much time tendering his riding style to a new sort of bike.

However, Bulega’s debut was better than it looked, and he deserves more credit for figuring things out as Sunday’s race in Portimao drew on. The numbers suggest that he did get quicker.

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Davide Tardozzi reminded Nicolo Bulega to ‘stay calm’ after Portugal Grand Prix mistake

Andrea Dovizioso thinks Bulega has done the ‘right thing’ by taking a risk to replace Marquez for the final few races of 2025.

However, he also believes that it’s the ‘perfect’ time for him to be learning about how everything works across a weekend, with a view to further tests next season.

Ahead of his debut, Bulega said he hadn’t spoken to Marquez or sought any advice from him ahead of his maiden outing.

The best policy was to get on the bike and start lapping. Undoubtedly, he will have learned a lot in Portugal that he can implement when he arrives in Valencia. He could be a sneaky contender for the top 10.

After qualifying in Portimao, his frustration was evident, after feeling that he had lost around five tenths at the final corner, and the chance to be higher on the grid.

Ducati boss Davide Tardozzi reassured him, though, with cameras on Ducati Inside capturing the moment he told Bulega to ‘stay calm’.

“I was a disaster on the last corner,” said Bulega.

“Stay calm, Nicolo, it’s fine. It’s part of learning,” replied Tardozzi.

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Nicolo Bulega told Miguel Oliveira that he’s ‘struggling’ the most with MotoGP tyres

Ducati told Bulega to have fun last weekend, and it’s something that he’ll have to remember in Valencia too.

Effectively, it’s a free opportunity that he couldn’t have predicted would arrive at the start of the year. There isn’t necessarily anything on the line either, so he’s free to express himself.

A crash in the Portugal sprint dented his confidence a little, but there was still a lot he could take away from it. He told Pramac’s Miguel Oliveira what he was ‘struggling’ the most with ahead of Sunday’s race.

“Yes, I need to understand a few things. There are so many different things. But yes, I’m having fun. It’s different, the thing I’m struggling the most with are the tyres.”