A nightmare Saturday
There’s no way, Pecco Bagnaia can’t get out of the crisis he has fallen into in recent weeks, with the lack of grip not allowing him to push on his Ducati.
Terrible qualifying, with the fourteenth position – almost 1 second from pole – and equally disastrous Sprint, with the thirteenth place at the finish – with a gap of over 17 seconds in just 13 laps.
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Bagnaia, total frustration and punches to the bike
And precisely in Q1 Pecco Bagnaia was the protagonist of an angry outburst driven by frustration: a series of punches thrown at the tank of his Ducati. Images immediately caught by the international broadcast and shared by the MotoGP social channels.
Frustration on display 💥 @PeccoBagnaia loses his cool#SanMarinoGP 🇸🇲 pic.twitter.com/UiVXezpBPg
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— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) September 12, 2026
Asked by journalists about this gesture, Bagnaia at the end of the Sprint explained – in statements reported by Motorsport Spain: “I’m trying to maintain a more positive approach, but I felt the need to do it. Unfortunately, it doesn’t change the result, but if I have to shout I prefer to do it on the bike and not in the pits. The frustration comes because I care about what I do and I know I’m a rider who can be at the front every Sunday. Instead, I find myself fighting for 15th place and so the frustration can come out this way.”
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Bagnaia talks about humiliation
In the comment on the disastrous Saturday, Bagnaia justified himself like this: “I have little feeling, if not zero. I’m trying to give my best and today it translated into 13th place. I can’t do more and I’m very sorry, also because in Ducati there are those who managed to solve the situation: practically everyone else. Seeing such a clear difference from the data is difficult, I feel rather humiliated at this moment, but it is so and I have to give my best. The difference between my Ducati and the others is huge.” And he concluded: “When I went out in Q1 with the new tire, I had the same grip as in the free practice with a 12-lap old tire. So it was difficult to do more. I tried to push, but the mistakes came out.”