Marco Bezzecchi
Francesco Bagnaia has responded to Valentino Rossi’s claim that his issues at Ducati have come as a result of Marc Marquez’s prowess on equal machinery.
Despite racing atop the same bike that proved to be dominant at the hands of Marc Marquez, Francesco Bagnaia suffered his worst season for the factory Ducati team since arriving in Borgo Panigale in 2021.
The Italian rider enlisted the help of everybody he could during the difficult campaign, including Casey Stoner, who gave Bagnaia some helpful advice that aided him for all of one race weekend at Motegi.
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The latest figure to comment on Bagnaia’s struggles is his VR46 Riders’ Academy mentor and MotoGP legend, Valentino Rossi.
During a roundtable with a series of MotoGP Hall of Famers, Rossi theorised that Bagnaia was ‘psychologically’ affected by Marquez’s dominance with Ducati’s bike last year.
Francesco Bagnaia says he didn’t ‘suffer’ because of Marc Marquez in response to Valentino Rossi
In a recent interview with GPOne ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix this weekend, Bagnaia was asked for his thoughts on Rossi’s comments.
The Italian rider has made it clear in the past that there has been no favouritism shown by Ducati towards their factory riders, and Bagnaia has now rubbished Rossi’s claim that the Spaniard is the reason for his issues.
“Marc came along and dominated,” Bagnaia said. “There’s nothing you can say to him. I couldn’t get to grips with a bike that had changed from the previous year, when it was perfect.
“I was in real trouble; I didn’t suffer because of Marc, but because I couldn’t fulfil my potential.”
Are people overacting to Ducati’s lack of performance at one round?
He was then asked if he learnt an important lesson while reflecting on the campaign over the winter break, to which he replied, “You always learn. What I’ve realised is that I can be competitive when the bike has potential.
“I’m working on learning to give more of myself when it has shortcomings, as happened in Thailand or throughout last year.”
- READ MORE: Sylvain Guintoli saw Ducati ready aero upgrade at Jerez MotoGP test to counter Aprilia’s superiority
Ducati predicted to struggle this season as Aprilia emerge as favourites
Despite a resurgence back to the front of the pack, Bagnaia’s 2026 MotoGP campaign seemingly began how last year ended, with his inability to maximise the performance of Ducati’s factory-spec bike on display once again.
Instead, Aprilia emerged as a dominant force, with Marco Bezzecchi’s victory in the Grand Prix leading the charge for the Italian constructor as all four of their riders claimed a spot in the top five at the chequered flag.
Pol Espargaro believes Ducati have now hit their ceiling in MotoGP. After years of enjoying a chokehold over the rest of the premier class grid, it’s looking increasingly likely that they will falter in the sport’s final year of the current regulation cycle.
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