It's done ! Ducati and Pecco Bagnaia had hinted that they would renew their lease before the first Grand Prix of the 2022 season which will take place in Qatar and they kept their word. Thus, the Italian driver and the transalpine brand have reached an agreement for their relationship to continue for two more seasons. Incidentally, this is the first post-2022 contract which is confirmed on the transfer market.
Born in Turin in 1997, Pecco Bagnaia made its debut in MotoGP in 2019 with the GP Desmosedici of the Pramac Racing team, a team with which in 2020 he achieved his first podium in the premier category, climbing to the second step of the GP Lenovo in San Marino and the Rimini Riviera. The Italian driver was promoted to the factory team last year and after taking pole position and a third position in the opening GP of the 2021 season at the Qatar, he continued to evolve to become one of the main protagonists of the championship. With 9 podiums, 4 victories and 6 pole positions, bagnaia closed 2021 in second position and is now eager to start the new championship, which opens the curtain on March 6 on the Losail International Circuit in Doha, Qatar.
Francis Bagnaia commented : " Being a Ducati rider in MotoGP has always been my dream and being able to continue two more seasons in the Ducati Lenovo team makes me proud and happy. In the official team, I found a serene environment: I feel in tune with the team and I am sure that together we can do great things. Now I just have to concentrate on doing well in this championship. I would like to sincerely thank Claudio, Gigi, Paolo and Davide and all the Ducati Corse staff. I will try to pay back all this confidence with excellent results on the track ».
Ducati will now focus on its second rider
Luigi Dall'Igna, General Manager of Ducati Corse added: “ we are really happy to have Bagnaia for two more seasons. Since his arrival at Ducati in 2019, Pecco has shown great talent and knows how to interpret our Desmosedici GP very well, adapting to piloting it in any situation. He did it especially last season, in which he experienced really significant growth, coming to play for the world title. The way he managed the races in Aragón, Misano but also Portimao and Valencia, achieving four fantastic victories, is proof of his maturation as a driver. With these qualities, we are convinced that he has all the potential to be able to fight alongside us for the title ».
The second handlebar within the factory Ducati will be played between Jack Miller, current holder of the position, George Martin, which demands answers fairly quickly from Borgo Panigale since Enea Bastianini is also in the race…
Here is an update on the transfer market:
| team up | motorcycle | pilot | Contract until |
| Resol Honda | Honda | Marc Marquez | 2024 |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Monster Energy Yamaha | Yamaha | Franco Morbidelli | 2023 |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| DucatiLenovo | Ducati | Francesco Bagnaïa | 2024 |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Red Bull KTM | KTM | Brad Binder | 2024 |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Suzuki Ecstar Team | Suzuki | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Honda LCR | Honda | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Aprilia | Aprilia | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| RNF Racing | Yamaha | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Pramac Racing | Ducati | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Tech3 KTM | KTM | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? | ||
| Gresini Racing | Ducati | ?? | ?? |
| ?? | ?? |
