Francesco Bagnaia, current rider for the Ducati team, has confirmed his departure from the Italian brand at the end of the 2026 MotoGP season. Starting next year, Bagnaia will move to compete with Aprilia, a move that has been anticipated after a challenging phase for the Italian rider.
Bagnaia, who has been a two-time champion of the series, is expected to be replaced by Pedro Acosta, a standout KTM rider, who will move to Ducati to team up with Marc Márquez in 2027. This decision has come after a year below expectations for Bagnaia, who has fallen in the standings behind Márquez, who dominated last season.
In the previous season, Bagnaia finished fifth, far from the championship, with 257 points adrift of Márquez. Despite this challenging season, Bagnaia played a crucial role during his time at Ducati, achieving the title in 2022 and repeating the feat in 2023, breaking a 15-year win drought for the Italian manufacturer.
Ducati’s director, Gigi Dall’Igna, has expressed his gratitude for Bagnaia’s contribution, noting that the rider has been a pillar in the development of the Desmosedici. He also downplayed the personal relationship between them, stating that the bond created will not be affected despite the change.
Now, Bagnaia has 13 Grand Prix races to increase his tally of 31 victories with Ducati. The Ducati rider line-up for 2027 will not include any Italian riders for the first time since 2010, when Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden competed.
Regarding his new team, Aprilia has shown excellent performance, with Marco Bezzecchi leading the standings this year. Bagnaia will pair with Bezzecchi, while Jorge Martín, his main rival for 2024, will join Yamaha.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
