Ducati: Gigi Dall’Igna Changes His Tone With Pecco Bagnaia

Starting as the favorite on a circuit like Spielberg that is usually favorable, Ducati instead had to contend with a rather disappointing weekend, in which the only real highlight was Marc Marquez’s second-place finish in the Sprint, while in Sunday’s Grand Prix, no Desmosedici finished in the top four.

Despite this—and almost paradoxically, given how things had gone in previous Grand Prix races—one of the few bright spots was Pecco Bagnaia, who finally seemed to be improving, scoring points on both Saturday and Sunday (something that hadn’t happened since the Sachsenring): even though sixth place in the Sprint and seventh in the Grand Prix cannot be called prestigious results, they are nonetheless a positive sign, according to Ducati Corse General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna during the customary debriefing on the official channels of the Borgo Panigale-based manufacturer.

“Pecco finished in seventh place: a good result that shows resilience and pride,” said Dall’Igna. “He worked well all weekend, marking a turnaround from the last few races. After all, we’re talking about a world champion who deserves better, but the important thing was to take a first step, and I’m convinced that others will follow in the upcoming races.”

Bagnaia arrived in Austria in the wake of an internal controversy that erupted after an off-air comment—which sounded like harsh criticism of decisions made in the pits—went viral. His relationship with the Desmosedici GP26, despite the positive impressions from last winter, has almost never led to significant results: only at Brno was Bagnaia able to smile, winning the Sprint race (his only victory of the season so far) and finishing the main race in third place.