DUCATI CREW “BUZZING” AFTER PEDRO ACOSTA’S ARAGON RUN AS BAGNAIA STRUGGLES

Francesco Bagnaia’s Aragon Grand Prix weekend turned into another difficult chapter for Ducati, ending with a crash in Sunday’s race and a scoreless result. After qualifying eighth, he slipped to 11th in the Sprint and then managed only five laps before retiring from the main event. It marked a second consecutive round without points, and Bagnaia himself described the situation as among the lowest moments of his career, with the downturn stretching back to 2025.

The contrast inside the Ducati garage was stark, because Pedro Acosta delivered a standout performance at the same event. The 22-year-old passed both factory Aprilia riders and also put Marc Marquez under pressure on his way to second place. Acosta’s result keeps him moving further ahead in the championship, now sitting two places and 46 points clear of Bagnaia despite riding what was described as an inferior machine.

While Bagnaia’s future with Ducati is already set to end at the season’s conclusion—he will move to Aprilia—Ducati’s leadership and staff appear to be fully focused on what Acosta represents for the next step. Journalist Mela Chercoles reported that the team’s reaction has been extremely positive, saying, “They are very, very excited about the bet they’ve made on Pedro Acosta.” She added that Ducati personnel were pleased with the podium, quoting: “His technical crew were absolutely buzzing over Pedro Acosta. That makes sense, seeing as he’ll be their rider next year.”

Acosta is expected to work with Cristian Gabarrini, Bagnaia’s current crew chief, when he joins Ducati next year. Chercoles also said Gabarrini has privately compared Acosta to Casey Stoner.

On the record, Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi went further, framing Acosta as a certainty rather than a risk. Speaking to AS, he said, “Acosta has once again shown today that we have a very bright future with him,” and added, “Acosta isn’t a gamble, he’s a sure thing.”

Even so, Acosta’s camp wasn’t entirely satisfied with the outcome. Chercoles noted that Carmelo Morales, Acosta’s coach, was at the podium and that she congratulated him, but he was “frustrated, upset about finishing second instead of first.” She explained that victory still feels close, but “they know they can’t quite grab it yet.”

For Acosta, the second place extended his streak of MotoGP podiums without a win to 14.