HODGSON SAYS DUCATI GARAGE DIDN’T LOOK LIKE A “NICE PLACE” FOR BAGNAIA AT AUSTRIAN GP

Neil Hodgson believes there are clear signs that the Ducati garage is “not a nice place” for Francesco Bagnaia, pointing to what he saw during qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix. Speaking on TNT Sports 2 on 19 September, Hodgson said the way Ducati personnel interacted with Bagnaia at the end of Q1 left him with an uneasy impression of the working atmosphere.

Bagnaia’s Saturday at the Red Bull Ring delivered his best qualifying showing in the last five races, but it still came after a difficult Friday. The two-time MotoGP champion had to fight through Q1 again, following practice problems that left him down in P18, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta topping the session. In qualifying, Bagnaia ultimately secured P7 on the grid—his seventh-best qualifying result across the first 15 rounds—despite finishing 0.610 seconds behind pole sitter Jorge Martin of Aprilia.

Hodgson focused on the moment Bagnaia returned to the Ducati garage after Q1. According to Hodgson, the world feed cut to images inside the team area as Bagnaia tried to explain an issue he had felt while riding. He said Ducati’s response appeared calm rather than urgent, and that Bagnaia also looked frustrated. Hodgson highlighted the lack of urgency and, more specifically, the “body language” he interpreted from the engineers.

“I can’t remember the last time [that] we had identical times going through [to Q2],” Hodgson said, referencing how Bagnaia advanced from Q1 in P2 with an identical lap time of 1:28.753 to LCR Honda’s Johann Zarco. Hodgson added: “I was just thinking that [Bagnaia’s half of the Ducati garage are not a happy camp]. Just look at the body language; everything about that – I just thought, ‘That does not look [like] a nice place, [a] nice working environment’.”

The Austrian GP qualifying snapshot adds to a tense backdrop around Bagnaia and Ducati. Hodgson’s comments came after a week of heightened friction linked to Bagnaia’s struggles and his public remarks earlier in the season. At the San Marino Grand Prix, TV microphones caught Bagnaia telling VR46’s Fabio Di Giannantonio that Ducati “won’t let me” adopt a baseline set-up while discussing his problems at Misano. There were also claims Ducati believed Bagnaia had effectively arranged the conversation with Di Giannantonio, which reportedly led to the pair holding clear-the-air discussions ahead of Austria.

Hodgson also referenced the broader context of Bagnaia’s final year with Ducati. He dismissed suggestions that Ducati had already given up on Bagnaia after his exit for Aprilia was confirmed, following the loss of his ride in Borgo Panigale to Acosta. Ducati’s decision to sign Acosta came after watching Bagnaia slip to fifth in the 2025 standings. In 2026, Bagnaia is described as having ongoing difficulties, while Acosta currently sits ninth in the championship after 14 rounds, with 66 more points than Bagnaia.