Ducati’s Dream Duo: Bagnaia and Marquez Team Up in Historic 2025 Line-Up Amid High Hopes and Stark Warnings

Francesco Bagnaia on Having Marc Marquez as a Teammate: "Could Be Fantastic or a Total Flop!"

Francesco Bagnaia shared, "It could turn out to be fantastic or a total flop! We'll just have to wait and see what happens next year."

Ducati's team leader, Gigi Dall'Igna, has praised the 2025 MotoGP roster featuring Francesco Bagnaia alongside the freshly recruited Marc Marquez as 'the greatest team Ducati has ever assembled.'

Undoubtedly, this is the most triumphant combination a team could create from the existing roster, featuring a total of eleven world championships won by riders, which could increase to twelve if Bagnaia secures his third consecutive MotoGP title this season.

The closest comparison to the current Ducati duo is the team of Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden from 2011-2012, boasting a combined total of ten championships. Eight of these were in the top-tier category, equaling the recent achievements of the Bagnaia-Marquez pairing.

The partnership between Rossi and Hayden contrasted significantly with that of Bagnaia and Marquez. Hayden had secured his championship with Honda four years prior, in contrast to Ducati, which had been on a decline since Casey Stoner secured the championship in 2007.

In a striking shift, Ducati's 2025 roster sets up a direct competition between the grid's top performer, Marquez, and the reigning MotoGP champion Bagnaia, simultaneously sidelining racers Jorge Martin, Enea Bastianini, and Marco Bezzecchi.

Bagnaia conveyed to MotoGP.com that Ducati opted for a new approach, focusing on nurturing young talent and offering them opportunities to advance to the factory team, ultimately choosing Marc due to his impressive title count.

"Undoubtedly, [Marc] is going to be highly competitive since he's already showing great speed, and next year, he'll be equipped with the best materials. Essentially, he's in a good position currently. However, wearing the red will definitely inspire him to aim for the peak."

Subsequently, the statement that undoubtedly caught the attention of Dall’Igna and the rest of the Ducati leadership team emerged, albeit delivered with a grin:

"I believe it might turn out to be excellent or a total mess! We'll just have to wait and see once we begin next year. It might turn into a catastrophe if we end up yelling or engaging in heated debates."

"However, I believe we're both quite intelligent and he'll adjust seamlessly."

Despite a lack of recent altercations between Bagnaia and Marquez, aside from some drafting issues, the duo experienced a collision during the season's second round in Portimao, which resulted in both riders crashing.

Bagnaia emerged victorious following a clash with Marquez during their battle for the win at Jerez, whereas Marquez executed a successful last-minute overtake on Bagnaia for the second position at Le Mans.

Marquez, now riding a GP23 from last year with Gresini, hasn't competed for a win since then.

In the meantime, Bagnaia referred to the exit of the current championship frontrunner Martin, who is moving from Pramac to Aprilia, his current teammate Enea Bastianini, who is set to join Tech3 KTM, and VR46's Marco Bezzecchi, set for Aprilia, as a significant setback for Ducati.

Bagnaia expressed, "It's a significant setback losing three riders of their caliber, as it hands over three exceptionally quick competitors to rival teams. This means we'll face three more challengers, yet we'll be at a disadvantage without access to their performance data."

This weekend, at the Austrian MotoGP, the Italian racer kicks off just a mere three points shy of Martin. This comes as Bastianini steps in for Marc Marquez, claiming the third spot in the world championship, bolstered by his back-to-back wins at Silverstone.

Reflecting on the season, Bagnaia remarked, “The initial segment didn't go as planned. Particularly the first three to four events,” he noted. “Despite securing a victory in Qatar, we encountered some challenges in Austin and Portimao due to our inability to experiment with certain things during testing. We were overwhelmed with tasks and couldn’t wrap up our work, which we finally managed to complete by Friday in Jerez.

Up until now, we had been facing some difficulties. The new motorcycle wasn't really meeting my expectations, which made things challenging. However, we managed to make significant progress. We clinched a victory at Jerez. Following that, at Le Mans, I was in contention for the top spot once more, and then I secured victories in the races leading up to Silverstone, which has greatly enhanced my comfort and performance on the bike.

"We've grasped the nuances of handling this bike. Significant progress has been made, and we plan to maintain this momentum. We're nearing perfection with the new bike, though a few minor aspects still need attention."

In summary, Bagnaia believes the Desmosedici model from 2022, which he used to overturn a 91-point gap and defeat Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo for his inaugural MotoGP championship, stands as his top motorcycle choice in his MotoGP career to date.

"The GP24 stands as a blend of the 22 and 23 models. However, in my opinion, the 22 remains superior at the moment. It was, for me, the finest I've ever experienced in MotoGP," he mentioned.

Discover More

Recent Updates

Recent Updates

Site Index

Crash.Net

©1999-2024 Crash Media Group

Reproducing text, photos, or illustrations, whether fully or partially, is strictly prohibited in any manner.