is hopeful his podium end on the Italian Grand Prix may mark a turning level for him in MotoGP.
The manufacturing facility Ducati rider put collectively his most spectacular efficiency of 2026 at Mugello, main the primary half of the race from sixth on the grid, earlier than settling into third behind the Aprilias of and .
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It marked the primary time this season that he received to face on the rostrum after a Sunday race, having secured third place in Barcelona solely after was hit with a tyre infringement penalty late on within the night.
Bagnaia has largely struggled for efficiency for the reason that begin of the 2025 season, with a couple of standout victories and podiums proving inadequate to masks his in any other case poor run of kind.
Nonetheless, over the past 5 rounds in 2026, he has damaged contained in the top-three in both the dash or the Sunday race.
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Requested if the Mugello weekend marked the top of a ‘lengthy nightmare’ in MotoGP, the Italian replied: “I actually hope it’s like this.
“From the beginning of the season, we began to work with a special mindset. I am giving every little thing at house, each coaching right here, to succeed in the extent we used to have.
“Our bike is working another way in comparison with the previous, and we try to set it in a method that I might be 100% myself and we’re reaching this type of degree.
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“It’s true that this GP for me was at all times tremendous good as a result of the structure of the monitor fits my type very nicely. However with a end result like this is usually a level of begin. If we proceed like this, I promise that we’ll arrive once more and we’ll be again there to battle for the wins.”
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Crew
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Crew
As an alternative of chasing an in a single day breakthrough, Bagnaia says he’s working with Ducati to regularly make his method again up the grid.
The Italian can already see some tangible indicators of progress, however insists there are some obstacles he wants to beat to battle for victories once more.
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“It is fairly clear that we’re struggling,” he mentioned. “We’re lacking rear grip, additionally in comparison with different Ducati, so we try to observe one other method.
“In my case, within the final two seasons, the bike began to have a special stability, and we’re simply making an attempt to maneuver again the stability within the place I choose, and the outcomes are arriving.
“So we simply transfer ahead just a little, step-by-step, however we’re arriving, and I am fairly certain that sooner or later we’ll be there preventing with them.”
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Requested the place he was missing essentially the most, particularly in comparison with the dominant Aprilias, the two-time MotoGP champion added: “I believe we’re lacking rear grip. With the Aprilia, it appears to be like like you may enter quicker within the nook as a result of you may flip extra.
“However we’re engaged on it and we try to work on it. And the following race is Balaton, the place the extent of grip is excessive, so possibly we could have much less points. After which the opposite two, Brno has superb grip and Assen has good grip, so I believe we might be aggressive.”
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