Let's talk MotoGP: But wait... Pecco Bagnaia isn't that bad after all?

It's time to talk about Pecco Bagnaia's start to the MotoGP season. The Italian, struggling against the speed of Marc Marquez, arrived in Europe at a significant disadvantage. But ultimately, after some reflection, I think he's not doing too badly at all. An analysis is in order.

 

He doesn't compete, but...

 

Let's not lie to ourselves: in terms of performance, Bagnaia is not yet playing in the same league as Marc Marquez. There's no point in dwelling on this point, we've all seen what happened in Thailand, Argentina, the United States and even Jerez, in fact. The two-time world champion is struggling to adapt to this Ducati Desmosedici GP25, which prevents him from fully attacking. He has to be content to stay on his wheels, without really being able to fight for the win on every outing, which is annoying against a monster of the caliber of Marquez. In addition, as if that weren't enough, he can't perform very well in Sprints, apparently because of the tank used by Ducati in the short format. It's not all rosy and I haven't even mentioned Alex Marquez, who is much better than him on GP24 so far.

 

 

Given this situation, one might think he's already out of the running. After all, we've seen championships folded after five rounds. But that's absolutely not the case. Bagnaia, at the time of writing, has " that » 19 points behind Marc Marquez and 20 on his brother Alex. I find that, given the context, it is very honest, not to say encouraging. How is this done?

One of two things. First, he's very consistent, more so than he's ever been before. Some will say he's playing the grocer, and the Spanish Grand Prix could prove them right, as he hasn't tried to get close to Fabio Quartararo. A more confident Bagnaia would not have hesitated for a second a few laps from the finish, when he was only three tenths of a second behind the Frenchman.. Pecco hasn't crashed yet, and that's what's keeping him alive. I don't see him going a whole season like this, but on the other hand, I don't see Alex Marquez going on like this indefinitely either. And just because Marc Marquez made two mistakes doesn't mean he's not going to make any more mistakes. His approach is the right one: instead of pushing with equipment that doesn't suit him to compensate, Pecco resigns himself and takes big points that could be useful to him later.

 

Damage control

 

Second, he maximized each of his results. He says he is not comfortable in Sprints because of the tank, but still has four top 3s on Saturday afternoon. Grand Prix, he could never have claimed better. There was a chance to seize in Austin and he didn't need to be asked twice. He even limited the damage in Qatar, where he started 11th, with this second place at the finish. During the Sprint in Losail, he fought for the points of eighth place, as if it were a victory. I like this state of mind. Pecco Bagnaia excels in the damage control, where others, in similar periods, would have wanted to do too much.

Thanks to this philosophy, he currently has 120 points in the ranking: it is 29 more than in 2024, and 26 more than in 2023 at the same stage. So, in the end... it's okay, right? Historically, Bagnaia is always a little below at the start of the year. This time, facing two such strong opponents, I think he negotiated this storm perfectly. What better could he do?

 

If Pecco Bagnaia solves his problems, it could hurt

 

 

We agree: the sun must return at some point, and the prospects for improvement are not exactly clear to see at the moment. However, I would like to qualify these gloomy predictions. First of all, I think that between Thailand and Spain, Pecco Bagnaia improved a lot. In Buriram, he couldn't touch Marc Marquez, while he gave him the answer – and in what way – at Jerez. Bagnaia is more in the game, especially on Fridays. He must continue this way if he hopes to tickle his brothers in qualifying, a crucial point that has already cost him points in 2025. But again, there is better.

Then, we must not forget that he remains a factory rider, thus benefiting from the latest improvements at Ducati. If the Borgo Panigale firm does not bet everything on Marc Marquez, I think he has a chance of benefiting from clever updates, which Alex Marquez will not be able to claim. Then, finally, better tracks are coming for him. Catalonia, the Netherlands, Italy are all chances to get back into this title race.

I think Bagnaia's room for improvement is much greater than Marc Marquez's. What more can the eight-time world champion do? He is already at his maximum, as evidenced by his fall in Jerez, where he was beyond the limit.

 

Conclusion

 

Pecco Bagnaia still has some issues to resolve, no one will disagree with me. Generally speaking, he needs to be faster and more incisive. But if he can pinpoint what's bothering him, he'll once again become a danger to Marc Márquez, to whom he proved in Andalusia that he can still be a nuisance. His teammate didn't kill the season even though he had the means to do so; watch out for the backlash.

I'm curious to know if you share my opinion about Pecco Bagnaia. Tell me in the comments!

 

 

Cover photo: Michelin Motorsport