Francesco Bagnaia says his Ducati continues to be plagued by a lack of rear grip, a problem that has persisted since the start of the 2026 MotoGP season.
The Italian bounced back from his 2025 nadir to emerge as a consistent performer this year, scoring four consecutive Sunday podiums and a sprint win over the last two months.
Despite three technical issues costing him as many as 40 points, he sits eighth in the standings during the summer break, 65 points down on championship leader Jorge Martin.
While those mechanical gremlins have been a source of frustration, Bagnaia says his biggest issue remains a lack of rear grip, which has prevented him from extracting the maximum from his bike.
The problem has been compounded by the fact that Ducati riders are relying heavily on the rear tyre to compensate for the bike’s front‑end limitations, leaving it more susceptible to degradation.
“It’s necessary, but I’m not heading into the summer break feeling happy, because I know how much I could be doing and we’re not doing it, so it bothers me a bit,” the three‑time world champion said at the Sachsenring.
Asked how he would rate his campaign so far, he added: “5.5. We’re improving a lot, but we haven’t solved the problem we’ve had since the first race, which is rear grip. I don’t have rear grip; I can’t use the rear for turning the bike and accelerating.”
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Photo by: Mark Wieland / Getty Images
Bagnaia hopes the factory Ducati team can emulate the solution found by Gresini after Alex Márquez struggled with the same rear‑grip issue during the opening flyaway races.
“The only rider on Ducati that is having my same issues is Alex [Marquez],” the 29‑year‑old added. “He was having my same issues before Jerez, then they solved it. So, I really hope that this summer break will help the team to understand what to do. We hope to figure out how we can do the same, perhaps by following the same path.”
Bagnaia underwent surgery on his right forearm this month but aims to be fit in time for the next round at Silverstone on 8 August.
The 2026 season marks his final year with Ducati, with Aprilia confirming last month that he will join the factory team alongside Marco Bezzecchi from 2027.