We haven't seen the real Enea Bastianini: signs of a resurgence in the Valencia test

A disappointing 2025 for Bastianini, who in the MotoGP test at Valencia had a few updates that could help him in the future: he wants a different 2026.

Looking at how the last season went, Enea Bastianini probably has some regrets about choosing KTM over Aprilia. With the RC16 he was truly competitive in only a few Grands Prix. He often failed to qualify well, which caused problems in the race, where coming through the pack is not always easy in MotoGP, even with good pace and a strong knack for tire management. On Tuesday in Valencia there was a test in which he was able to try some updates, although unfortunately the less-than-ideal conditions at Ricardo Tormo did not allow riding in the morning, effectively halving the riders' track time.

The rider from Romagna would have liked more time on track in Valencia, but some of the new items tested were to his liking and he wants to delve deeper into them in February at the MotoGP test in Malaysia: "Unfortunately the test was a bit short, so we didn’t do everything we wanted. I tried a new seat; it has potential, but we still need to make some changes. We also tested some fairings; some aspects were positive and some negative, but overall I think we brought good information back to the factory."

The new seat was something he’d been waiting for for many months and, unfortunately, he didn’t have enough time to test it properly. In any case, it’s important to have had a fairly positive first impression and to have gathered useful data for making improvements. In general, Bastianini expects to make significant progress for 2026: "The most important thing for us is the setup - he explains - because this year I didn’t feel comfortable on the bike at all and I didn’t feel ‘Enea’, so I hope that with my new crew chief we’ll be able to find the solution for Sepang next year."

From the Valencia test, the 2020 Moto2 champion began working with Andres Madrid, his new crew chief who previously worked alongside Brad Binder. He’s an engineer who knows the KTM world very well and can therefore help him take steps forward. The split from Alberto Giribuola, now Toprak Razgatlioglu’s crew chief, is something he would have preferred to avoid. But it’s happened, and now the only option is to look ahead.

Bastianini is a talented rider and has shown it in past years, aside from the troubled, injury-plagued 2023. He’s not a rider meant for fourteenth place in the MotoGP standings, which was his final position in 2025. We’ll see if he and KTM can experience a 2026 that’s completely different from the last year.