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

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

In a podcast discussion, the question was raised: "Is there some uncertainty because we haven't progressed far enough into the season to tell other Ducati riders that they're out of the running mathematically, and therefore should hold back in such situations?"

In Sunday’s Aragon MotoGP, a contentious incident in the final laps involving Francesco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez resulted in both Ducati racers losing their chances at a podium finish.

It also meant that reigning champion Bagnaia, who had arrived with a five-point lead in the standings, left Spain injured and trailing Jorge Martin by 23 points.

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

The highlight of the race was the intense fight for a podium spot between Pecco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez. Bagnaia seemed poised to overtake Marquez; it appeared to be only a matter of time. Then, unexpectedly, an incident occurred.

"What did you think about the situation? It seems it happened not too long ago. Clearly, both riders are pointing fingers at each other…"

“A disastrous weekend for Bagnaia, marking his worst performance since the introduction of the Sprint format last year,” responded Pete McLaren, the editor of Crash.net MotoGP.

Nearly everything fell apart for him. He faced two tire problems, qualified on the less favorable side of the track, and to top it all off, he had a collision just when it seemed inevitable that he would overtake Alex Marquez and secure 3rd place.

“Clearly, Alex was competing in front of his local supporters and aiming to possibly stand next to Marc on the podium during his remarkable return. Therefore, it's understandable that he was reluctant to surrender his position, and ultimately, there simply wasn't sufficient space for both of them.”

The issue now is, who noticed the other first? And who should have provided more space? The Stewards decided not to take any additional measures. They mentioned reviewing some technical data, but we don't have the specifics.

"The data aspect was intriguing because, after the decision, Pecco mentioned that the data indicated Alex might not have slowed down as much as one would typically expect from a rider involved in a collision."

"When two riders have an accident and are using identical bikes, the manufacturer can review the data for both. This is precisely what Ducati did. We also know they conducted a similar analysis after the incident at Portimao, where Marc Marquez and Bagnaia crashed. Marc made a brief comment to address the blame issue, stating, 'Ducati has access to all the data…'"

“Pecco is now claiming that the data indicates he was not at fault. Did the Stewards have access to this information too? If they had seen what Pecco mentions is evident in the data, would the outcome have been different? It's uncertain."

"Another helpful feature could have been a 'visor cam' perspective, similar to what we saw from Alex Rins during the private test at Misano, to see where each rider was directing their attention!"

"A collision occurred during the race, leading to significant consequences. Pecco was fortunate because Marc prevented Martin from earning the highest points this weekend. The most positive update is that neither Pecco nor Alex Marquez sustained serious injuries."

Moreland asked, “Lewis, what do you think about this?”

MotoGP journalist Lewis Duncan remarked, "I'll take a contrarian stance regarding data. It reminds me of Honda's situation in 2015 when they confidently claimed to have data proving that Valentino had kicked Marc, and they were ready to present it to everyone!"

"If I were to assign blame, I would attribute a bit more to Pecco. This isn't the first time we've observed this behavior; it happened in Portugal and again during the Sprint race in Jerez. Pecco appears to struggle with choosing the right moments to engage in battles."

“We observed a similar situation with Marc in Portugal. Even if you couldn't see him from the outside, it was clear he would re-enter the track. So, why position your bike there? It's obvious that would result in a collision. Navigate the corner more strategically."

"At Jerez, when he found himself squeezed between Bezzecchi and Brad Binder, it was clear he was faster than both. He should just back off and not engage in the battle. The same advice applies to the current situation."

“You noticed that Alex didn’t check his surroundings. He was trailing Alex when Alex went off course at Turn 12. It’s clear he isn’t aware of your presence. You understand that Turn 13 is a tight spot, especially when making a right turn. It’s highly probable that Alex will be in that position.”

"In my opinion, when you're competing for a championship, you need to be more strategic in how you play the game. Alex should have checked his surroundings and perhaps thought, ‘This is going to be close. I'll step back for now and try to make a comeback later.’ Likewise, Pecco should have considered that there was still plenty of time to make his move and achieve his goal."

"In each instance I've referred to, Pecco has ended up with the short end of the stick, losing valuable points. I believe Ducati should have a conversation with Pecco about being more strategic when interacting with other racers, emphasizing that securing a 4th place finish is preferable to ending up with no points at all."

“There are times when Pecco appears to have difficulty accepting the best result available. In contrast, Martin has recently been content with finishing second when that's the best he could achieve. As a result, he's now leading the championship by 23 points.”

In response, Moreland said, "Pete, this situation is similar to what happened last season with Bagnaia and Vinales at Le Mans. It's unfortunate timing since Martin is performing consistently without errors and accumulating points."

"And this brings us to the topic we all despise, which is team orders," McLaren stated. "It's hard not to draw comparisons between Sunday and previous years when the other Ducati riders understood they needed to allow the title contenders a bit more space."

"Currently, there's some uncertainty since the season is still early. We can't yet tell the other Ducati riders that they're out of contention and should therefore hold back in such scenarios."

Possible contenders for the title, Pecco and Martin, might assume that their fellow Ducati racers will grant them more leeway. However, those teammates are under the impression that no such directives have been issued and continue to compete fiercely for every spot.

"Another consideration is what advice you would give Marc Marquez and Bastianini, who are trailing slightly behind the leading duo, yet still have a viable opportunity."

Duncan commented, “I believe Ducati should consider this for its benefit. The last thing they want is for Alex Marquez to collide with Pecco Bagnaia again, causing Martin to gain more points while Marc leads the race."

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

"Ducati should take the lead and announce: 'These are our contenders for the title. These are the riders who can win the championship. If you are not among them, do not compete aggressively against them.'"

"We hope to avoid this scenario, but it’s a worst-case situation for Ducati if Martin is leading the championship. They can't afford to have Martin move to Aprilia while holding the top position."

"I found it intriguing to observe Gigi Dall’Igna’s reaction after Marc finished the race. He appeared quite… distressed. It seemed like he was burdened by something."

"That individual did not seem content. It appeared that he observed the situation and thought: Pecco is off the track, Marc is securing victories – a scenario they were concerned about disrupting the balance over before letting him join Gresini – and Martin is at the top of the championship standings."

“They need to consider the fact that, if the circumstances had been handled differently and if Marc had been willing to join Pramac, we could have had both riders on our team.”

"It seems Ducati has several issues to address in the coming weeks, and one key concern is improving their management of the current situation, or they risk facing embarrassment by the end of the season."

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