Bagnaia Mystery: “That Thing No Longer Exists.” Ducati Caught Off Guard by the Rider’s Words

The Piedmontese rider’s final Malaysian GP as a Ducati rider ends in the worst possible way, and he would rather not go into the nature of his problems. Tardozzi has also responded.

Sepang is one of Francesco Bagnaia’s favourite tracks, but in 2026 it turned into something of a nightmare. While he had managed to salvage a sixth-place finish in the sprint race, the full-length race was pure agony: he finished 13th, 32.960 seconds behind the winner, his teammate Marc Marquez.

He is nowhere near his ideal level, and the worst part is that he does not seem to understand why there is no solution that would allow him to be much more competitive, despite knowing what the problems are. As we have written before, the three-time world champion is surely counting down the days until his time with Ducati comes to an end and he can begin his chapter with Aprilia.

Speaking to Sky Sport MotoGP, the Piedmontese rider admitted that he was hardly surprised by his poor performance in today’s race at Sepang; he had already realised it would be tough: "It went as I expected. The sprint would have gone the same way, too, but the rain gave me a break. Today, unfortunately, I got away and there was a lot of lack of grip. I tried to manage things to finish as far up the order as possible, but even so, I spent more than half the race with absolutely no rear grip. On the final lap I did a 2:05, a time you wouldn’t even set on your first lap after not racing here for a year".

A few drops of rain during the sprint race had helped Bagnaia, who kept pushing at the same pace while the riders behind him slowed down, leaving them unable to pass. Today, in completely dry conditions, the Ducati Lenovo MotoGP team’s number 63 suffered a total disaster: "I had the same feeling as on Saturday. By the end of the race, I wasn’t even touching the ground with my knee in the right-hand corners. There wasn’t much I could do".

Major setup changes were made to his Desmosedici GP26 during the Malaysian GP warm-up, but the situation remained unchanged. Bagnaia says that adjustments to the setup and electronics are not working: "When the problem isn’t related to the setup or the electronic settings—adding or reducing power—then even making major changes won’t solve anything. We’ve tried that all year, and the problem has always stayed the same; it was the same last year, too. At the Misano test and in the Japanese GP, something was changed beyond the usual settings and setup. That something allowed me to ride again, but now that thing clearly doesn’t exist, just as it hasn’t existed since last year’s Japanese GP".

He was referring to the Misano test and his triumphant 2025 Japanese GP. That test was particularly important for him, and he went on to dominate the entire weekend at Motegi, taking pole and winning both the sprint and the race. After that, however, he was unable to maintain that form. What happened to the change that had helped him take a major step forward? Pecco avoids answering: "Let’s not go into the details...".

What is the source of his problems? He cannot answer that question either, offering only a quip: "I really wish I knew".

Davide Tardozzi, also speaking to Sky Sport MotoGP, seemed somewhat taken aback when Pecco’s comments were relayed to him: "To be completely honest, I have no idea what he’s referring to".

The Ducati team manager was unable to respond to the rider’s claims and could only reiterate that the team was doing everything it could to help him: "Unfortunately, it’s true that nothing we’ve done has helped Pecco’s performance. We’re also aware that he’s a champion and has natural speed, but the team has explored every avenue and, at the moment, we’re at something of an impasse. Unfortunately, we still haven’t managed to find what Pecco needs. We’ll never stop trying to help him. We’ve made some changes specifically for him, but we still haven’t found the key to solving the problem".

Tardozzi also confirmed that Bagnaia will be given the green light to ride the Aprilia at the post-GP test in Valencia. Nothing to the contrary had emerged in recent weeks, but the Ducati team manager was asked about it and confirmed that Pedro Acosta will also be released by KTM and will therefore be able to make his Ducati debut.

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