Ducati general manager Gigi Dall’Igna confesses that Ducati will be “weaker overall” in MotoGP in 2025.
Ducati’s recent rise to MotoGP dominance has seen the Italian manufacturer win the previous four Constructors’ Championships and two Riders’ Championships.
Aside from at the Circuit of the Americas, where Maverick Vinales won with Aprilia, Ducati has won every race in the 2024 season thus far.
However, from 2025, Ducati will field only six bikes, following Pramac Racing’s opting to end its long-standing affiliation and form a new partnership with Yamaha.
This led to Ducati providing VR46 with factory machinery, but only the sole rider, Fabio Di Giannantonio, would get to ride the GP25.
Ducati signed Marc Marquez to the factory works team for 2025, but the repercussions saw its current factory rider, Enea Bastianini, move to Tech3 KTM.
Pramac’s Jorge Martin and VR46’s Marco Bezzecchi joined the factory Aprilia team, with the former initially touted for the factory seat.
With former crucial staff joining rival manufacturers, Dall’Igna has now admitted that Ducati isn’t as strong as in previous seasons.
Dall’Igna believes that acquiring six-time MotoGP champion Marquez is a massive coup for the factory team.
“We are probably the first manufacturer to try to use the data from the satellite team in order to improve the bike,” he told the MotoGP website. “Of course we have less opportunity to do this for the future.
“The other manufacturers learned that it was possible to do something like that.
“Overall we are weaker than this year because the number of riders will be less next season.
“But on the other side, for the factory team, we will have probably the best ever riders in the history of Ducati.
“The others bring from us not only the riders but also a lot of technicians. Yamaha, Aprilia and Honda now [have poached our technicians].
“For sure, this is a boost for us to do the best.”
Dall’Igna provides key update for 2027
From 2027, MotoGP embarks on a new regulation era, with 1000cc engines replaced by smaller 850cc ones.
The new regulations will see manufacturers reduce aerodynamic use and the abolishment of all ride-height devices.
With 2027 quickly approaching, Dall’Igna has disclosed that Ducati is already preparing for the new regulation era. Ducati has held initial meetings to decide what direction the Bologna marque wants to take with its bike.
“The 2027 season arrives quite soon so we start discussions about how the new bike will be,” he said.
“We have to reconsider everything not only because of the reduction in power, but we cannot use the ride height device anymore.
“Also this moves the balance in a different position. So on the technical point of view it will be an important modification of the bike.”
