Francesco Bagnaia’s 2025 MotoGP campaign was marked by frustration as the Italian rider struggled to maintain the competitive speed he showed in 2024. Throughout the season, Bagnaia was unable to replicate his previous pace, creating a significant challenge in securing race wins and podiums despite his status as a two-time world champion.
Bagnaia himself acknowledged the difficulty:
“It’s very difficult to accept because, looking at the race times from me last year, compared to this season, I could be winning, or fighting for a win,”
he said during the year.
“This season I’m not able to repeat [those times], and I’m much slower compared to last year.”
These statements encapsulate the core issue that dogged his 2025 performances.
Limited Opportunities for Direct Year-to-Year Comparisons
Not all races between the two seasons can be fairly compared, as several venues such as Termas de Rio Hondo, Balaton Park, Brno, and Valencia were absent from the 2024 calendar. Furthermore, some events were excluded due to weather conditions, modified race formats, or restarts, while ensuring Bagnaia completed both races added further limitations.
For consistent comparison, 18 races were selected where factors like the Barcelona event used the 2024 Catalan GP instead of the Solidarity finale, and Misano referenced the Emilia Romagna GP because of rain disruptions in 2024. Though temperature, grip levels, grid positions, and tire choices fluctuated, most available tire compounds remained unchanged.
Bagnaia’s 2025 Performance Across Tracks
Out of these 18 comparable races, Bagnaia posted faster times than 2024 in just four instances. Two of those improvements occurred at Motegi, where he achieved victories in both the Sprint and Grand Prix events. The other gains were recorded in the Aragon Sprint, benefiting from a dirtier 2024 track, and the COTA Sprint, where he improved from eighth position in 2024 to third in 2025.
In contrast, the majority of races—14 in total—saw Bagnaia riding slower with the GP25 bike compared to his times on the GP24 machine. At Mandalika, he qualified only 16th and lost 25 seconds during the Sprint versus his 2024 winning time, highlighting the pace deficit.
Perhaps the most disheartening example came at Mugello, traditionally a stronghold for the Italian. He finished fourth, clocking a time almost 23 seconds behind his winning pace from the previous year, yet only five seconds behind Marc Marquez, the 2025 race winner and Bagnaia’s own teammate. Marquez’s winning time was notably 17.8 seconds slower than Bagnaia’s 2024 result, underscoring a broader slowdown.
The Phillip Island Sprint was another difficult outing, where Bagnaia’s performance dropped significantly. Meanwhile, the race winner Marco Bezzecchi, on an Aprilia, managed a much quicker lap than Jorge Martin’s 2024 time, illustrating uneven performance shifts across riders and machinery.
Analyzing Overall Race Speeds in 2025
Expanding the scope, a comparison of 28 race-winning times in equivalent events from both years revealed mixed results. Of these, 13 races were completed faster in 2025, while 15 finished with slower times than in 2024. Such variation reflects different race conditions, strategies, and competitors’ approaches.
A comfortable lead, as frequently enjoyed by Marc Marquez during 2025, often reduces the necessity to push for absolute best times. However, of the 15 slower winning times in 2025, 12 were set aboard the Ducati GP24 model ridden by competitors like Bagnaia, Enea Bastianini, and Jorge Martin in 2024. This suggests that replicating the previous season’s pace might have produced more victories for Bagnaia, potentially increasing his win count by three Sprints and four Grand Prix races.
Notable Performances and Setbacks Among Top Riders
Despite his overall struggles, Bagnaia’s double victory at Motegi showed minimal improvements over his 2024 winning times, representing rare bright spots in an otherwise difficult year. Meanwhile, Marc Marquez’s Aragon GP win stood out as a significant time improvement in 2025, riding on a cleaner track surface compared to his 2024 Gresini efforts.
Marquez’s 2024 Phillip Island time was several seconds quicker than the 2025 Grand Prix winner Raul Fernandez on a Trackhouse machine, although Bezzecchi’s Sprint victory involved a penalty requiring a double long lap, complicating direct comparisons. Marquez missed the 2025 Phillip Island round after injuries from an incident involving Bezzecchi at Mandalika, impacting his season’s continuity.
The slowest winning times relative to 2024 were seen at Mugello, Assen, and Misano. Marquez’s 2025 Mugello victory was 17.829 seconds slower than Bagnaia’s 2024 winning pace, followed by slower wins at Assen and Misano versus times set by Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini, respectively.
Implications for Bagnaia’s Future Competitions
Francesco Bagnaia’s inability to sustain his 2024 speed in 2025 raises concerns about his and Ducati’s capacity to adapt to the evolving MotoGP landscape. With new circuits added and conditions varying, a clear challenge emerges in maintaining consistent top performance. The notable slowdowns compared to his own previous times demonstrate that maintaining peak pace requires not only rider skill but also machine development and favorable race circumstances.
As the season closes, Bagnaia and his team face the difficult task of addressing these speed deficits to reclaim their winning potential. Adaptations in bike setup, race strategy, and physical conditioning will be central to improving his MotoGP performance in the upcoming campaigns, especially to compete against rivals like Marc Marquez, Enea Bastianini, and emerging talents from other teams.
