DOVIZIOSO SAYS BAGNAIA’S STONER-LIKE APPROACH HOLDS HIM BACK

Andrea Dovizioso believes Francesco Bagnaia’s approach to finding speed helps explain why the Ducati rider does not readily use Marc Marquez as a reference on track. In Dovizioso’s view, Bagnaia shares a key trait with Casey Stoner: both prefer to work from their own understanding of a fast lap rather than follow another rider’s lines.

“Pecco’s a bit like Casey, isn’t he?” Dovizioso said on his YouTube channel. “He’s very clear in his mind about what he needs to do to set a good lap and what he’s looking for to set a good lap, and following another rider doesn’t come so easily to him.” He added that following someone can sometimes help, but riders with this mindset tend to perform better alone. They trust they can produce a fast lap once they find the feel they want, rather than searching for answers by copying others.

The comparison carries particular weight at Ducati. Stoner delivered the manufacturer’s first MotoGP title in 2007, while Bagnaia became its next champion in 2022 and defended the crown in 2023. But Bagnaia’s form has fallen sharply since losing the 2024 championship to Jorge Martin in the final race. Marquez’s arrival at Ducati in 2025 has added to the pressure, and Bagnaia is set to leave the team at the end of 2026 after Ducati opted not to renew his contract, choosing Pedro Acosta instead. Aprilia has signed the two-time champion for four years from 2027.

Bagnaia is ninth in the 2026 standings with five rounds remaining and has scored 166 points, the lowest total among riders on the GP26. His only Grand Prix finishes across the past eight rounds have been sixth in Germany, seventh in Austria and eighth in Japan. Over the same stretch, Marquez has won four Grands Prix and five Sprint races.

Marquez has also shown a willingness to learn from rivals. In Indonesian Grand Prix qualifying, he followed title contender Martin and used the Aprilia rider’s lines, qualifying fourth while Martin took fifth. Dovizioso’s assessment suggests that this sort of tactic does not come naturally to Bagnaia, particularly when he is struggling to find confidence in his own set-up.

A lack of rear grip has troubled Bagnaia on the GP26 throughout the season, and he expects the problem to persist through the remaining races. After a difficult Indonesian weekend, he acknowledged that Marquez “makes the difference” through his ability to get the tyres working. Marquez’s Mandalika Sprint victory was especially stark: Bagnaia finished eighth, 10.039 seconds behind. Bagnaia then crashed out of Sunday’s Grand Prix, while Marquez came home sixth.

Martin, meanwhile, remains at the centre of the title fight. He leads Marquez by two points with five rounds left, putting him in position to deny Ducati another championship after beating Bagnaia in 2024. Martin is due to leave Aprilia for Yamaha ahead of the 850cc era.