My observation about Ducati’s strategy for the upcoming MotoGP season and the potential impact of their current bike allocation is as below. Here’s a breakdown of the situation based on the latest information:
Ducati’s 2026 MotoGP Bike Configuration
- Four Factory Bikes: Ducati is expected to field four latest-spec factory bikes (GP26) for the 2026 season.
- Ducati Lenovo Team: Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Márquez.
- VR46 Racing Team: Fabio Di Giannantonio.
- Gresini Racing: Álex Márquez.
- Two Year-Old Bikes: The remaining two Ducati riders, Franco Morbidelli (VR46) and Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini), will likely be on the year-old GP25 machinery.
- Engine Freeze: The engine specification for all MotoGP manufacturers is frozen for the 2026 season due to the upcoming new regulations in 2027 (which will see a reduction in engine size from 1000cc to 850cc). This means that the GP26 will likely be a refined version of the GP25, with changes to the chassis, aerodynamics, and other components, but the core engine will be the same.
The Impact of the 2025 Season
Hitting on a key point regarding Ducati’s performance in the 2025 season. Having a mix of latest-spec (GP25) and year-old (GP24) bikes has created some unexpected challenges.
- GP25 Struggles: The new GP25 has been a bit of a handful for some of the riders, including the reigning champion, Francesco Bagnaia. While it has shown flashes of brilliance, it hasn’t been consistently dominant like the GP24 was. Marc Márquez, however, has been able to master it, highlighting the bike’s potential but also its demanding nature.
- Data and Development: Having more riders on the latest-spec bike would indeed provide a significant advantage in terms of data collection and development. As Bagnaia himself has pointed out, having four bikes provides more data and allows for a more comprehensive development process during testing and races. With only three GP25s this season, it has limited their ability to gather as much information as they might have wanted.
The 2026 Advantage
Your hypothesis that the move to four factory bikes will be a plus for Ducati is well-supported.
- Increased Data: With four riders on the same GP26 prototype, Ducati will have a massive amount of data to analyze, which will accelerate their development process. They can test different setups and components across four bikes and four different riding styles, giving them a more complete picture of the bike’s strengths and weaknesses.
- Homogeneity: The fact that other major manufacturers like Aprilia and KTM are also fielding multiple factory-spec bikes means that Ducati needs to match this to maintain their competitive edge. By having four factory bikes, Ducati can keep pace with their rivals in terms of data acquisition and development.
- Familiarity: With the engine spec frozen, the focus for 2026 will be on refining the chassis, aerodynamics, and electronics. Having more riders on the same bike will allow Ducati to fine-tune these elements much more effectively, which could give them a significant advantage over a single year.
In summary, the transition to four factory bikes in 2026 seems to be a strategic move by Ducati to overcome some of the challenges they’ve faced in 2025 and to ensure they remain at the forefront of MotoGP as the new regulations loom in 2027.
Sources
Rider and Bike Allocations:
- Alex Marquez to receive a factory-spec bike:
https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/news/alex-marquez-to-ride-identical-ducati-to-marc-and-bagnaia-in-2026/10760336/https://www.gresiniracing.com/en/alex-marquez-and-gresini-motogp-2026-is-factory/https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2025/09/19/gresini-confirm-factory-bike-for-alex-marquez-next-season/759442
- VR46 Racing Team riders and bike specs:
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2025/09/02/morbidelli-renews-for-2026-with-pertamina-enduro-vr46-racing-team/757887https://www.crash.net/motogp/news/1082006/1/ducati-confirms-vr46-status-after-alex-marquezs-2026-motogp-upgrade
- Ducati Lenovo Team riders:
https://www.ducati.com/ww/en/news/marc-marquez-to-join-francesco-bagnaia-in-the-ducati-lenovo-team-until-2026
MotoGP 2026 Regulations and Engine Freeze:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_MotoGP_World_Championshiphttps://www.motorsportmagazine.com/articles/motorcycles/motogp/twenty-years-of-motogp-tech-rule-changes-where-has-it-got-us/https://www.intentsgp.com/ultimate-guide-motogp-engines/
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