Pecco Bagnaia says he “wasn’t surprised” that he crashed out of last Sunday’s Indonesian Grand Prix as “the backwards step we’ve taken in the last two years was particularly noticeable”.
The Ducati rider looked to have made a bit of a breakthrough at Mandalika, having made it directly into Q2 for the first time since June’s Dutch Grand Prix.
But he was only eighth in the sprint, before crashing out on lap six of the grand prix.
Bagnaia says he had “no grip, no feeling” and crashed trying to catch up to Luca Marini to try and increase his front tyre pressure.
Pecco Bagnaia, Ducati Corse, 2026 Indonesian GP
© Gold and Goose
“I just crashed,” Bagnaia told the media, including Crash, last Sunday.
“No grip, no feeling, and I just crashed. Easy.
“I wasn’t surprised. I was slow, and I was trying to catch up with Luca to raise the front tyre pressure.
“But I was asking too much of my bike at that moment; it wasn’t supporting me. And I crashed.”
“We no longer have connection with the gas”
Loading this video will expose you to potential cookies and tracking by the provider
Bagnaia told Sky Italy that the problems he has been having with rear grip on the Ducati were even worse at Mandalika.
"Yes, unfortunately, the step backwards we've taken in the last two years has been particularly noticeable on this track, where you need speed and grip,” he added.
“We no longer have much connection with the gas, and on a track like this, that really shows, unfortunately.
"In my case, it's a lack of grip. I don't know about the others, but in general, this is a track where grip isn't at its best, especially with a tyre like this one.
“Here, you need a lot of support from behind, and unfortunately, without that, you struggle even more.
“I saw from the data that, in general, it seems like the other Ducati riders had a little more grip, but theirs still wasn't ideal either.”
Indonesia was a tricky race for Ducati riders, with Marc Marquez its leading contender in sixth at the chequered flag.
But there were flashes of speed, with Fabio Di Giannantonio third in qualifying and Marquez winning a dramatic sprint race.
Lewis joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having been a journalist for five years covering MotoGP for the Motorsport Network. In February of 2026, he became Head of Editorial.