**Ducati’s Dilemma: Should They Intervene After Bagnaia-Marquez Aragon Clash?**

Should Ducati intervene following the collision between Bagnaia and Alex Marquez?

Podcast discussion: “Is there some uncertainty due to the season still being early, making it difficult to tell other Ducati riders that they’re no longer in contention and should therefore back off in such situations?”

Sunday’s disputed incident near the end of the Aragon MotoGP race involving Francesco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez resulted in both Ducati riders losing their positions on the podium.

This also implied that reigning champion Bagnaia, who had come to Spain with a five-point lead in the title race, departed the country injured and trailing Jorge Martin by 23 points.

In the most recent episode of the Crash.net MotoGP podcast, Jordan Moreland, the host, posed the question:

The main highlight of the race was the intense competition between Pecco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez for a podium finish. Bagnaia seemed poised to overtake Marquez, with the outcome appearing inevitable. Suddenly, an incident occurred.

"What did you think about it? It seems like it happened not too long ago. Clearly, each cyclist is pointing fingers at the other…"

“A dreadful weekend for Bagnaia. This is his worst performance in an event since the introduction of the Sprint format last year,” noted Pete McLaren, MotoGP editor at Crash.net.

“Nearly everything went awry for him: two tire problems, starting from the less favorable side of the track during qualifying, and to top it all off, a crash when it seemed inevitable that he would overtake Alex Marquez for 3rd place.

"Clearly, Alex was competing in front of his local supporters and aiming to possibly stand alongside Marc on the podium during his remarkable return. As you might expect, he was reluctant to relinquish his position, and ultimately, there simply wasn't sufficient space for both of them."

"The issue now is, who spotted whom first? And who was responsible for allowing more space? According to the Stewards, no additional measures were necessary. They mentioned reviewing some technical data, but the specifics remain unclear."

"The data aspect was intriguing because, according to Pecco, when he discussed the incident after the ruling, he mentioned that the data indicated Alex might not have slowed down as much as one would typically anticipate from a rider involved in a crash."

When two riders on identical bikes are involved in an incident, the manufacturer can access data from both bikes. This is precisely what Ducati would have done in this situation. It's known that they did something similar after the Portimao event, where Marc Marquez and Bagnaia had a collision. To address the debate over who was to blame, Marc casually mentioned, ‘Ducati can see all the data…’

"Pecco now claims that the data indicates he wasn't at fault. Did the Stewards have access to this information too? If they had seen the evidence Pecco mentions, would it have altered their decision? It's uncertain."

"Another helpful feature would have been a 'visor cam' perspective, like the one Alex Rins used during the private test session in Misano, to see exactly where each rider was focusing their attention."

"A significant event in the race with major consequences. Pecco benefited from Marc's intervention, which prevented Martin from securing the most points possible this weekend. The most positive outcome is that both Pecco and Alex Marquez avoided serious injuries."

Moreland asked, “What do you think about it, Lewis?”

MotoGP journalist Lewis Duncan remarked, "I’m going to challenge the use of data here. Every time someone mentions data, I can’t help but recall Honda in 2015. They were so confident that their data proved Valentino had kicked Marc, and they were ready to reveal it to everyone!"

“If I had to assign blame, I would place a bit more on Pecco. We've witnessed similar behavior from him previously, like in Portugal and somewhat in the Sprint race at Jerez. Pecco seems to struggle with choosing the right moments to engage in battles.”

In Portugal, we observed this situation involving Marc. Regardless of whether he was visible from the outside, it was clear he would re-enter the track. So, why position your bike there? It's inevitable that this will lead to a collision; handle the corner more skillfully.

In Jerez, when he found himself squeezed between Bezzecchi and Brad Binder, he was advised to back off because he was faster than both of them. The same advice applied in this situation.

"You observed that Alex didn't check his surroundings. He was trailing Alex when Alex veered off course at Turn 12. You noticed that he wasn't aware of your presence. You understand that Turn 13 is a tight spot where you need to make a quick right turn. It's highly probable that Alex will be there."

In my opinion, when you're competing for a championship, you need to be more strategic in your approach. Alex should have checked his position, realized it was a close call, and maybe decided to pull back and look for another opportunity to make a move. Similarly, Pecco should have thought that there was still enough time to achieve his aim and could have waited for a better moment.

In every instance I’ve highlighted, Pecco has ended up in a worse position and has lost valuable points as a result. I believe Ducati should have a conversation with Pecco and advise him to be more strategic when interacting with other riders. It’s important to recognize that securing a 4th place finish is preferable to ending a race without any points at all.

"I believe Pecco occasionally has difficulty accepting the best possible outcome. In contrast, Martin has recently been content with finishing in second place when that's the best he could achieve. As a result, he now leads the championship by 23 points."

Moreland responded: “Pete, this situation is reminiscent of the incident involving Bagnaia and Vinales at Le Mans last season. It’s unfortunate timing since Martin has been performing flawlessly and consistently scoring points.”

"And that brings us to the topic we all despise: team orders," stated McLaren. "It's inevitable to compare Sunday's race with previous years, where other Ducati riders were aware they needed to allow the title contenders some extra space."

"There's some uncertainty right now since it's still early in the season. We can't yet tell the other Ducati riders that they have no chance mathematically, so they should hold back in that scenario."

"Perhaps Pecco and Martin believe that their leading positions in the championship will earn them more leeway from fellow Ducati riders. However, those teammates are under the impression that, without any specific instructions, they are still competing fiercely for every spot."

"Next, consider what advice you would give to Marc Marquez and Bastianini, who are slightly trailing the top two but still have a viable shot at success."

Duncan stated, "In my opinion, Ducati should review this situation for its benefit. The last thing they need is another clash between Alex Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia, which could result in Martin gaining more points while Marc leads the race."

"We’ve observed how toxic the fan base can become in those scenarios, when they believe 'this happened, sabotage and so on'."

"Ducati must take the lead and declare: ‘These are our title contenders. These are the riders who have the potential to win the championship. If you're not among them, do not compete aggressively against them’."

“We definitely don't want to witness that scenario. It's a worst-case situation for Ducati, with Martin currently at the top of the championship standings. They can't afford to let Martin move to Aprilia while holding the championship title.

"I found it intriguing to observe Gigi Dall’Igna's reaction once Marc finished the race. He appeared quite… distressed. It seemed as though something was heavily burdening him."

"This individual did not seem pleased. It appeared as though he observed the situation and thought: Pecco is off the track, Marc is securing victories—which initially caused some concern about disrupting the balance before his move to Gresini was approved—and Martin is at the top of the championship standings."

"They must consider that they could have had both of those riders on their team if the circumstances had been handled differently and if Marc had been willing to join Pramac."

A lot of issues need to be addressed by Ducati in the upcoming weeks. One key problem is their need to handle the current situation more effectively, or else they might face significant embarrassment by the end of the season.

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