Francesco Bagnaia has strongly urged {that a} satellite tv for pc Ducati seat holds little attraction to him, as hypothesis continues over the place he might head in MotoGP subsequent 12 months.
Bagnaia’s contract with Ducati expires on the finish of the present season, and it’s broadly believed that he is probably not retained by the manufacturing facility squad for MotoGP’s new rule cycle.
Nonetheless, the Italian stays probably the most profitable rider for Ducati within the premier class and there stays a chance that the Borgo Panigale marque might accommodate him elsewhere inside its MotoGP line-up.
One potential avenue could possibly be VR46, run by Bagnaia’s mentor and MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi. The Italian squad is about to enter 2027 with a wholly new line-up, doubtlessly opening the door for the double MotoGP champion.
The introduction of latest technical rules in 2027, headlined by the arrival of 850cc engines, additionally implies that there will probably be no disparity in equipment between riders of the identical producer, with all beginning the season on the same-spec bike.
Nonetheless, when requested if he can be prepared to simply accept a seat at a satellite tv for pc staff to remain inside Ducati’s roster, given his lengthy and profitable affiliation with the producer, Bagnaia confused that his ambitions stay a lot greater in MotoGP.
“I imagine I’m a front-runner rider, so my ambitions should all the time lead me to remain on the forefront,” he mentioned.
“There are a lot of alternatives, and the great work I’ve completed in recent times actually helps at this second, however with out strain and with out haste, I’ll make the choice that I believe is correct.”
Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Group
Photograph by: Mohd Rasfan – AFP – Getty Photographs
The MotoGP grid is about for a significant reshuffle subsequent 12 months, with Bagnaia’s team-mate Marc Marquez the one high-profile rider not anticipated to alter groups.
Aside from Pedro Acosta’s mooted transfer to Ducati, 2021 champion Fabio Quartararo is tipped to affix Honda subsequent 12 months, with Aprilia’s Jorge Martin anticipated to take Quartararo’s seat at Yamaha. In the meantime, final 12 months’s runner-up Alex Marquez is believed to be contemplating a transfer to KTM.
These adjustments might nonetheless depart room for Bagnaia to land a manufacturing facility seat for 2027, though his subsequent profession transfer stays unclear in the mean time.
Talking in an interview with MotoGP, the 29-year-old mentioned he has some “nice alternatives” for 2027, however stopped in need of revealing his choices.
“We’re kind of in the identical boat [as Alex Marquez],” he mentioned. “Within the desk in entrance of me, I’ve nice alternatives and I’ll determine very quickly.”
Throughout his media scrum, he added: “Nonetheless talking, it is clear {that a} season like final 12 months can put you on the improper facet, however nonetheless talking, I’ve many alternatives and we simply must determine.”
Bagnaia endured a disastrous 2025 season as he struggled to adapt to the GP25 all 12 months, at the same time as he received two grands prix and the identical variety of dash races.
This wouldn’t have affected his long-term prospects in regular circumstances, however because of the onset of latest rules in 2027, the rider market is shifting at unprecedented speeds, and the manufacturing facility groups are eager to lock of their riders within the first quarter of the 12 months.
Requested if he was annoyed that he received’t have an opportunity to show that his 2025 marketing campaign was an anomaly earlier than his future is set, Bagnaia mentioned: “It’s what it’s. We live in a world that’s all the time tremendous quick, so it’s good to be fast. Jorge Lorenzo mentioned an accurate factor, that you’re remembered from the final races that you simply do.
“It is regular that it is like this, it is right that it is like this. Certainly, within the final three, 4 years the contracts are determined a lot earlier than, a lot sooner.
“But it surely’s like this, and actually I believe it is right.”
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