Bagnaia-Ducati Nightmare, 0 Points in Two Months: "Not Even the Team Can Explain"

Pecco Bagnaia leaves Misano with a lot of bitterness. The Ducati rider ended up in the gravel at the Variante del Parco, marking the third consecutive weekend without points. The situation is becoming increasingly hard to hide and accept. Waiting for the next MotoGP chapter aboard the Aprilia...

In front of the home crowd, Pecco Bagnaia couldn’t excite or be excited. On the San Marino circuit he saw the same problems return that have been plaguing him for some time. The Desmosedici GP no longer gives him confidence; he feels it’s a foreign bike, far from the one that led him to win two MotoGP titles. The Piedmontese rider clashed with the Red from the very first laps, coming out of a nightmare Q1 in which he never managed a clean lap. Starting from the fifth row, he tried to make up positions. As soon as he asked a bit more from the front of his Ducati, Pecco lost grip and had to retire.

Third Grand Prix in a row without points. His fairytale with the Borgo Panigale factory is about to end in a truly sad way. The only, meager consolation is that this time he knows the real reason for the fall. "I tried to carry more speed through the corner." At this point, all that’s left is to reassess his seasonal expectations. "Right now my level is for ninth or tenth place."

To think that not long ago Bagnaia was one of the most incisive and victorious riders in MotoGP. The harmony with the bike has changed profoundly; there are maneuvers he used to execute with ease that he can no longer repeat on the Ducati. The problem emerges especially under braking and on corner entry. "I can’t understand why certain things don’t work for me anymore, especially under braking, on corner entry, and through the turn. It’s really difficult, and the team can’t explain it either, and that’s why it’s so complicated."

Since the Silverstone GP something has changed, but neither he nor the team have been able to identify what’s happening. Yet the Misano track offered extremely high grip, though for Pecco it felt like the opposite. The only good news is that the next MotoGP round will be held in Austria, a very favorable track for Valentino Rossi’s protégé. But the current situation calls for caution. "It’s a good circuit for Ducati and one of the best for me. When I felt comfortable with the bike, I was able to win races by several seconds," Bagnaia recalled.

In the overall standings, the Chivasso rider is overtaken by Alex Marquez and sits 9th with 143 points. His teammate Marc Marquez, after the double win in San Marino, takes the lead tied on points with Jorge Martin.

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