Bagnaia focused on Qatar as recovery point in MotoGP title battle

A number of days in the past, on the launch of a brand new sports activities street bike in Rome, Ducati Team CEO Claudio Domenicali claimed that Francesco Bagnaia’s season would actually start in Qatar — the place a run of tracks extra suited to his style begins.

The 2-time MotoGP world champion endorsed the thesis on Thursday, citing the distribution of races within the MotoGP 2025 calendar as a significant factor within the domination his new team-mate, Marc Marquez, has proven over him within the first two weekends.

After being unable capable of battle head-to-head for victory in Thailand, after which failing even to make the rostrum in Argentina, Ducati’s manufacturing facility rider Bagnaia appeared in good spirits in Texas. In any case, Qatar is now only one race weekend away.

“If we had began the world championship in Qatar or Portimao, issues could be totally different,” stated Bagnaia. “However it’s not that I began so badly. I completed on the rostrum and fourth in [the Argentina GP]. It is simply that Marc and Alex [Marquez] did a greater job.”

The “issues” Bagnaia refers to? A deficit of 31 factors to Marc, whose brother Alex (Gresini Ducati) can be forward of Bagnaia within the standings.

This weekend’s venue, Circuit of the Americas, doesn’t instantly current itself as a venue the place the pecking order is more likely to change, no less than so far as the elder Marquez brother is anxious. Marc has gained seven occasions on the monitor and calls it ‘particular’.

However though Bagnaia fell off on the Americas GP whereas main in 2023, he hasn’t traditionally been sluggish in Texas. In Argentina, alternatively, he got here into the weekend having by no means completed higher than fifth at Termas de Rio Hondo, in any world championship class. In that context, his third place dash and fourth-place grand prix finishes there may very well be framed as positives. And Bagnaia desires to imagine that the worst may very well be behind him.

“I feel this circuit is a bit higher than the one in Argentina, and I can take extra benefit of the braking and course adjustments,” defined Bagnaia in Austin.

“In Argentina, I could not exploit my robust factors. I nonetheless misplaced plenty of pace getting into the corners. I have been coaching rather a lot to attempt to enhance on that.

“It is a monitor the place I can really feel a bit higher. I prefer it extra when we have now this sort of braking and these sorts of easy corners. So I feel will probably be a bit higher and with all of the steps we did within the final two races, I feel we could be extra aggressive.”

Nonetheless, Bagnaia is beneath few illusions concerning the problem within the USA and understands the significance of harm limitation. Requested what a passable outcome this weekend would appear like, the Italian added ‘victory’ virtually as an afterthought.

“To shut the hole and to be nearer to the chief…or in entrance of the chief,” stated Bagnaia.

“I feel this weekend Marc can be tremendous aggressive. It’s his finest race monitor, together with the Sachsenring.

“Usually Alex will not be that quick right here however we clearly see the step in entrance he has taken this season. So my goal can be to seek out my feeling again and battle with that.”

‘Pecco Bagnaia, Ducati Workforce, simply behind team-mate Marc Marquez and Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing, on the Argentina GP 2025

Picture by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Photographs

Bagnaia additionally moved to appropriate a notion that he needed to return to his 2024 bike, claiming that sure feedback in Argentina had been misconstrued: “What I would like is to get better the sensation of 2024, not the bike of 2024. It was only a idea. I’m unsure everybody understood.

“In truth, the idea was a bit misguided. However in any case, the sensation I am searching for is what I had final yr. However you need to transfer ahead so I’ll proceed with the bike I’ve ridden till now however I can be looking for an answer to get again what I had final yr.”

The Torino man added that his evaluation after Argentina meant he now had a a lot clearer concept of the place he was dropping time in comparison with Marc Marquez.

“I noticed that what I’m lacking from final yr is the final a part of the doorway [to corners]. I used to be lacking a little bit of pace there and it’s the place I am dropping time. I am excellent in braking, I am excellent within the second half… however within the final half, after I must put extra pace on getting into within the corners, it’s the place I am struggling extra.

“This was additionally state of affairs in Argentina, so I educated rather a lot [since] to analyse and attempt to enhance on that, on the bike and see if I do a step on this race weekend.”