Marco Bezzecchi
Pedro Acosta has claimed that Francesco Bagnaia has ‘no excuses’ for losing to Marc Marquez, having been the number one rider at Ducati.
Marquez’s arrival at Ducati in 2025 gave the team perhaps the greatest rider pairing in history, with, at the time, nine MotoGP titles between the Spaniard and Bagnaia. However, last year, the Italian was dominated by his teammate.
Marquez won the title with five rounds to spare, while his teammate had a horrible season on the GP25, finishing fifth with just two wins. Alongside his struggle with finding a feeling from the bike, Valentino Rossi thought Marquez was ‘psychologically’ affecting Bagnaia.
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Pedro Acosta says Francesco Bagnaia has ‘no excuses’ losing to Marc Marquez as number one Ducati rider
Bagnaia rubbished Rossi’s claim, but it was clear that Marquez had the better of him in 2025. The Italian could not catch his teammate on merit and ended up finishing behind Alex Marquez, who was on the year-old spec Ducati, Marco Bezzecchi and Acosta in the standings.
For Acosta, Bagnaia has ‘no excuses’ for losing to his teammate, even if it is Marquez. When the 33-year-old joined Ducati, Bagnaia was the clear number one rider, having won two titles and finished P2 twice in the last four years.
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He was convincingly beating Jack Miller and Enea Bastianini, but Marquez suddenly changed the mood around Ducati. Asked how Bagnaia felt at the Borgo Panigale outfit last year, Acosta said on the Gypsy Tales Podcast: “Difficult to say, difficult to say when you are not in the box.
“People say that maybe Pecco start to be pressured by Marc being in the box. But also it’s true that Pecco was coming from losing the championship in the last race.
“It’s difficult to know what takes more weight in the balance. Not easy, not easy to be always the number one and get beaten by your teammate, because like I say, there are no excuses.”
Do you agree with Pedro Acosta’s verdict on Francesco Bagnaia losing to Marc Marquez at Ducati?
Marquez is back ahead of Bagnaia in the standings after winning his 100th race at the Hungarian GP. But the Italian has been showing encouraging signs of improvement, having finished P3 in the last three races.
However, Carlo Pernat says Bagnaia does not feel at ‘home’ at Ducati anymore. He is leaving for Aprilia in 2027, which could be the fresh start that he needs after being overshadowed by Marquez.
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