Francesco Bagnaia set to be without his crew chief at Aprilia as Ducati prepare to block move

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Ducati are reportedly looking to prevent Cristian Gabarrini from joining Francesco Bagnaia at Aprilia when the two-time champion moves for the 2027 MotoGP season.

The Borgo Panigale team is believed to have already moved on from the 29-year-old, even though his contract doesn’t expire until the end of 2026. Bagnaia fell out of favour with Ducati management after a poor 2025 campaign and has started 2026 in similar form.

Word came out as early as December 2025 that Ducati had decided to move on from Bagnaia after he finished fifth in the previous year’s championship standings. By early 2026, it was confirmed that KTM standout Pedro Acosta would be stepping in, having signed a two-year deal starting in 2027.

Bagnaia quickly began weighing up his options, initially appearing set for a switch to Yamaha ahead of the new regulations. However, he later changed course and opted for Aprilia instead, where he’ll line up alongside Marco Bezzecchi.

Ducati expected to prevent Cristian Gabarrini from joining Francesco Bagnaia at Aprilia

There were initial reports suggesting that Bagnaia wanted Gabarrini to join him at Aprilia, and Ducati didn’t seem opposed. Gabarrini had previously left Ducati once before, following Casey Stoner to Honda, before returning in 2017.

However, Motosprint now reports that Bagnaia is “most likely” heading to Aprilia without Gabarrini. Ducati appears ready to block the Italian engineer from moving with him when he starts his two-year deal with an option through 2030.

Gabarrini has been part of Bagnaia’s team since before his factory debut in 2021. The two first teamed up during Bagnaia’s Pramac days in 2019, and Gabarrini had already been a familiar face around the paddock from his time working with Jorge Lorenzo in 2017 and 2018.

If Ducati does go through with this decision, it could be another challenge for Bagnaia as he adapts to his new surroundings. It’s another layer added to what was already going to be a complex transition for the rider.

The continuity would have made sense given their long history and mutual understanding built over eight seasons together. Instead, Bagnaia will now have to develop chemistry with someone new in the role.