**Title: Ducati’s Dilemma: Navigating Team Orders and Rider Ambiguities Post Bagnaia-Marquez Clash**

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

Podcast discussion: "Is there some uncertainty because we haven't progressed far enough into the season to tell other Ducati riders, 'you're no longer in contention, so back off in such instances'?"

A contentious incident late in the race on Sunday resulted in both Ducati racers, Francesco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez, being eliminated from the final podium position at the Aragon MotoGP.

This also implied that after arriving with a five-point lead in the championship, the defending champion Bagnaia departed Spain injured and trailing Jorge Martin by 23 points.

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

The main highlight of the race was the intense duel between Pecco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez for a podium finish. Bagnaia appeared poised to overtake Marquez, seemingly just a matter of time. But then, an unexpected incident occurred.

“What’s your perspective on the situation? I believe it happened not too long ago. It’s clear that both riders are pointing fingers at each other…”

"A disastrous weekend for Bagnaia, marking his worst performance in an event since the Sprint format was introduced last year," commented Pete McLaren, editor at Crash.net MotoGP.

“Almost everything went awry for him, from the two tire problems to qualifying on the less favorable side of the track. To top it all off, he got into a collision when it seemed inevitable that he would secure 3rd place from Alex Marquez.

Clearly, Alex was competing in front of his local supporters and had hopes of possibly standing on the podium alongside Marc during his remarkable return. As you might expect, he was reluctant to concede, and ultimately, there simply wasn't enough space for both of them.

The issue now is, who noticed whom first? And who was responsible for creating more space? The Stewards decided no additional measures were needed. They claimed to have examined certain technical data, though the specifics remain unclear.

"The data aspect became intriguing when Pecco later commented on the decision, stating that the data indicated Alex perhaps didn't slow down as much as one might anticipate from a rider involved in a crash."

When two riders have an accident and are using identical bikes, the manufacturer has access to the data from both. This is precisely what Ducati would have examined. We are aware that they did the same thing after the Portimao incident when Marc Marquez and Bagnaia crashed into each other. Marc made a brief comment to resolve the dispute over who was to blame, stating, 'Ducati can see all the data…'

"Pecco now claims that the data exonerates him from blame. Did the Stewards also review this data? Could their decision have been different if they had seen what Pecco mentions? It's uncertain."

"Another helpful feature would have been the 'visor cam' perspective we saw from Alex Rins during the private test at Misano, to see where each rider's focus was!"

"A racing mishap with significant consequences. Pecco caught a break as Marc prevented Martin from securing the highest points this weekend, and the silver lining is that both Pecco and Alex Marquez did not sustain serious injuries."

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

MotoGP journalist Lewis Duncan remarked, "I'm going to challenge the discussion with some data. Every time data is mentioned, I can't help but recall Honda in 2015. They were confident they had evidence showing Valentino had kicked Marc, and they intended to reveal it to everyone!"

“If I were to assign blame, I would place a bit more on Pecco. This isn't the first time we've seen such behavior from him. 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.”

"In Portugal, we observed Marc. Even if he wasn't visible from the outside, you knew he would return to the inside, so why position your bike there? You were aware it would lead to a collision; navigate the corner more effectively."

In Jerez, when he found himself squeezed between Bezzecchi and Brad Binder, he was actually faster than both of them. He should have pulled back and avoided the battle. The same advice applies to this situation.

It was clear that Alex didn’t check his surroundings. He was following Alex when Alex veered off course at Turn 12. You could tell that he was unaware of your presence. You know that Turn 13 is a tight spot, especially when you switch to the right. It’s highly probable that Alex will end up there.

"You need to be more strategic, particularly if you're aiming for a championship. In my opinion, Alex should have checked behind him and thought, ‘This is going to be close. I'll yield now and try to regain my position later.’ Similarly, Pecco should have considered, ‘There's still time left. I can make my move later.’"

"Each time I've referenced, Pecco has ended up at a disadvantage and has lost points. I believe Ducati should talk to Pecco and advise him to be more selective about when to engage with other riders. Finishing 4th is preferable to ending a race without any points."

"Pecco seems to occasionally have difficulty accepting the best possible outcome available to him. In contrast, Martin has consistently accepted second place when that's been the best he could achieve over the past few weeks. As a result, he's now leading the championship by 23 points."

Moreland responded, “Pete, this situation is similar to what happened last season with Bagnaia and Vinales at Le Mans. It's particularly unfortunate because Martin is performing flawlessly and consistently earning points.”

“And that brings us to the dreaded topic of team orders,” McLaren remarked. “It’s hard not to draw parallels between Sunday’s events and previous years when other Ducati riders understood they needed to allow the title contenders some extra space.”

"There's some uncertainty right now because the season hasn't progressed enough to definitively tell the other Ducati riders that they're no longer in contention, so they should hold back in such scenarios."

"It’s possible that Pecco and Martin, being the frontrunners in the championship, believe that their fellow Ducati riders will give them more leeway. However, those other riders are likely thinking, 'Since we haven't received any instructions, we're still competing fiercely for every spot.'"

"Another point to consider is 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 that Ducati should seriously consider this matter for its own benefit. He pointed out that it would be undesirable for Alex Marquez to have another clash with Pecco Bagnaia, which could result in Martin gaining more points while Marc takes the lead.

"We have observed how toxic the fan base can become in such scenarios, when they believe 'this has occurred, sabotage and so on'."

"Ducati should take the initiative and declare, ‘These are our contenders for the title. These are the riders who can secure the championship. If you aren't among them, don't compete aggressively against them’."

"We hope to avoid this scenario, but for Ducati, it's a worst-case situation with Martin at the top of the championship. Allowing Martin to move to Aprilia while holding the number one spot is something they can't permit."

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

"That individual did not seem content. It appeared as though he observed the situation and thought: Pecco has crashed, Marc is securing victories—which had concerned them about disrupting the balance before permitting him to join Gresini initially—and Martin is at the forefront of the championship."

“They must consider the possibility that they could have retained both of those individuals in their team if the circumstances had been handled differently and if Marc had been willing to join Pramac.”

"There are many issues Ducati must address in the upcoming weeks, and one crucial aspect is to handle the situation more effectively, or they risk facing significant embarrassment by the season's end."

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