Marco Bezzecchi
Francesco Bagnaia will know that time is running out for him to earn an extension on his Ducati deal for 2027.
The MotoGP regulations are going to change in 12 months, with a smaller, 850cc engine making its debut.
But Ducati will want to enter the new era knowing that they have the strongest two riders on the grid, and without any weaknesses.
On the evidence of 2025, Bagnaia does not fit those criteria. He struggled massively to find any sort of form in the second half of the season.
Who is Ducati’s BEST option if they have to replace Francesco Bagnaia?
Massimo Rivola thinks Bagnaia lost ‘confidence’ and blames that for being the main reason for his downfall.
Ducati’s ride height device caused Bagnaia problems, too, and these are things that are going to need to be addressed over the winter.
READ MORE: Ducati employees may have just dropped the biggest hint that Francesco Bagnaia will stay beyond 2026
Francesco Bagnaia would benefit from a return to his ‘really angry’ state to save his Ducati seat
Back in 2022, after ending up 91 points behind title rival Fabio Quartararo, a ‘really angry’ Bagnaia vowed to make a comeback after the German Grand Prix.
“I’m angry, really angry,” he told Motorsport Week. “The plan was to attack at the start, but if I was unable to fight with Fabio (Quartararo) in the first two laps because he had the medium, I would try to not stay close to him to try and not overheat the front tyre.
“This didn’t go well because I crashed, looking at the data it’s tough to understand, but my feeling is that it’s a strange crash because I’ve never seen a MotoGP rider crash like this in the dry like I was in the wet or on mud.”
Even though there have been hints that Bagnaia will stay at Ducati, reverting to his old underdog mentality against teammate Marc Marquez won’t do him any harm.
Being ‘really angry’ will force him to push the limits and might help him regain some of the confidence he has lost.
As soon as pre-season testing, he might be able to secure his future, but that depends on how fast he tries to go from lap one.
READ MORE: Francesco Bagnaia explains what he has to ‘rediscover’ at Ducati in the 2026 season
Why Francesco Bagnaia already has a significant advantage over Marc Marquez for 2026
With Marquez sidelined from the final four races of 2025, Bagnaia was leaned on as Ducati’s team leader once more.
That included the post-season test at Valencia, where he was the main rider tasked with providing feedback on parts for next year.
It means that he can set the bike up however he prefers it, and Marquez will have to deal with it when he returns.
Bagnaia thinks ‘nothing has changed’ at Ducati and that his team still wants to continue with him in the future. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have to earn it, though.
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