Neil Hodgson suspects one aspect of Francesco Bagnaia’s move to Aprilia in 2027 could give him an “advantage” to beat Marc Marquez after they struggled as Ducati team-mates.
Marquez to A Ducati In the year The group gathered around Bagnia in 2025 when the former moved to Borgo Panigale. But it didn’t take long for Marquez to turn the tide and take control, as he climbed the ranks of the riders while Bagnaia struggled endlessly to adapt to the tricky GP25.
even if Marquez He missed the last four rounds of 2025 due to injury, still finishing the season with 257 points from Bagnia. at last , Bagnaya Last year’s fifth place finish in the standings when Ducati switched to Pedro Acosta marked the beginning of the end in red.
Bagnaya She got a revival of sorts in 2026, but it wasn’t enough to get rid of the news that had been coming for a long time Ducati has signed Acosta with Marquez from 2027. Finally, it was announced this week that Acosta will be leaving KTM for Ducati after his contract expires.
How many trophies will Francesco Bagnaia win with Apria in the next four years?
Apria giving Francesco Bagna a four-year contract will help him beat Marc Marquez.
Two-time MotoGP champion Bagnaia has only been officially on the market for a day, but Apria announced his signing this Thursday. It has been confirmed Bagnaia signed a four-year contract with Aprilia By 2030, which Hodgson believes will “work for everyone”.
Read more: The best moments of Francesco Bagnaia’s MotoGP career
Bagnaia’s long-term deal to replace Jorge Martin at Aprilia from 2027 could also give him an “advantage” to beat Marquez, which he didn’t have when they were teammates at Ducati. Aprilia They have proven that they believe in Bagnaia, and that can unleash his full potential again.
Hodgson They spoke TNT Sports 2 (27/06, 07:09): “His manager worked his socks off – he got 10%, or whatever percentage he gets. I mean, a four-year contract works for everyone, it really does.
“If you’re a Peco, you’ve got that stability, that security. If you’re an Epria, you know you have a special rider in the Peco.
“And Peco couldn’t really beat Marc as a teammate, he found it difficult. So the only way he can beat Marc Marquez at the front is hopefully if he gets the benefit from the manufacturers. So I feel like everybody wins with this deal.”
How do you cope with being Marc Marquez’s teammate?
Bagnaia admits his four-year Aprilia contract is unusualMotoGP teams often choose two-year deals to stay in the same market cycle as their rivals. But he wanted a long-term commitment from Aprilia, and he thinks it will show confidence in their 850cc project for 2027.
CEO Massimo Rivola believes Bagnaia turned down a “high salary” to join Aprilia.He also said he suspected the offers would come from Japanese rivals Yamaha or Honda. It’s another sign of Bagnaia’s faith in Apria, which could help him take the fight to Marquez in 2027.
When Bagnaia became comfortable at Ducati, he was their star rider and challenged for the title every year from 2021 to 2024, including wins in 2022 and 2023.
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