After coming up short in the past two MotoGP seasons, Francesco Bagnaia is making it clear he’s only focused on what lies ahead.
There was a time when Bagnaia was at the top of MotoGP, clinching back-to-back titles with Ducati in 2022 and 2023. But he hasn’t been able to add to that tally over the last two years.
Ducati’s wait for another championship stretched over 15 years before Bagnaia ended the drought in 2022, becoming just their second rider ever to do it.
He didn’t stop there, backing it up with another title the following season and becoming the first rider to go back-to-back for Ducati.
But since then, Jorge Martin took the title in 2024 and Marc Marquez followed up with one of his own in 2025, both riding Ducatis as well.
This year looks like a crucial one for Bagnaia. If he’s going to reclaim his spot at the top, he’ll need to find something extra and push harder than ever before.
Bagnaia not looking at past titles to motivate him in 2026
After finishing the 2025 season in fifth place, both Bagnaia and Ducati were left trying to figure out what went wrong.
However, his first official outing of the year showed promise. At the Sepang Test, Bagnaia ended up sixth on the timesheets, a solid start to build on as he looks ahead to the new season.
Speaking with MOWMAG after Sepang, Bagnaia reflected on how he uses his past success, admitting that he tends to downplay it as a way to stay motivated.
“No, I tend to be quite self-critical. I tend to downplay what I have done to push myself to continue in this way. I really would like to keep winning, this year has started well as a first test,” said Bagnaia.
“I like to win, like all the riders here. But it is not something to be taken for granted, so do it you have got give 100% in everything that you do. My motivation is try always better.”
Uncertainty surrounds Bagnaia’s future with Ducati
Bagnaia has been a part of the Ducati family ever since he arrived in the top class back in 2019, starting out with Pramac before moving to the main team two years later.
This will be his sixth year riding for the factory squad, but signs are pointing towards a change for 2027, with growing talk that he won’t be sticking around for a seventh season.
There were reports during pre-season testing at Sepang suggesting Pedro Acosta is set to take over his seat next year, leaving Bagnaia to look elsewhere.
As it stands, there have been reports that he’s already been talking with both Aprilia and Yamaha about potential moves, which would mark his first switch away from Ducati since entering MotoGP.
The early rumour is that Yamaha are favourites to land him, but Jorge Lorenzo has also highlighted Aprilia as an ‘excellent’ fit for Bagnaia’s next step.
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