Fermin Aldeguer is now seeing exactly why Francesco Bagnaia struggled so much on Ducati’s 2025 bike

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Gresini ace Fermin Aldeguer is riding the Ducati GP25 this year, the same bike that perplexed two-time MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia.

Originally, the plan was for Aldeguer to ride a factory-spec bike in his second season, but teammate Alex Marquez forced a rethink with a surprise runner-up finish in the championship. Ducati allocated the GP26 to the 29-year-old instead.

While Marquez was winning the Spanish Grand Prix last time out, Aldeguer finished a rather anonymous ninth. Having missed the opening round through injury, the 2025 Rookie of the Year currently sits 15th in the championship on 20 points.

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Ducati may regret Francesco Bagnaia stance after hearing Fermin Aldeguer complaints

Aldeguer may have a 100% Q2 record this season, but he isn’t happy with the handling of his motorcycle.

Speaking to Speedweek after the Jerez test, he stressed the need to sharpen the front end ahead of the French Grand Prix.

“We also tried to find something that would help me get closer to the apex of the corner when braking and turning in,” he said. “We tried a few things, some worked, some didn’t.

• READ MORE: Pedro Acosta’s Ducati contract signing shows how they really feel about Francesco Bagnaia

“But it definitely helped – also with Le Mans in mind. For us, it was primarily preparation for the next GP.”

As the publication notes, Aldeguer’s complaints ‘sound familiar’. Bagnaia ‘regularly’ gave the same feedback last year, but Ducati seemed to conclude that it was a mentality issue after sampling countless solutions.

While Marc Marquez romped to the world championship, Bagnaia failed to score points in 18 of the 44 races he started. His relationship with the team was tested, and they reportedly decided over the winter not to renew his contract for 2027.

Fermin Aldeguer is also facing the same tyre wear issues as Francesco Bagnaia

As noted by his friend and mentor Valentino Rossi, Bagnaia kept running out of tyre life at the end of races in 2025. Rossi says this was previously a key strength for Bagnaia.

Aldeguer is experiencing the same unwelcome turnaround in 2026, having excelled at protecting his Michelins during his rookie season.

“One of the things we focused on was tyre wear,” he said. “Last year, I had more reserves towards the end of the races, and we wanted to understand that better.”

While Bagnaia is heading to Aprilia for 2027, Aldeguer is expected to join VR46 with full factory support, which is effectively an internal promotion for the Ducati-backed rider.