Ducati's 2022 MotoGP bike "already raceable" after first test

The 2021 MotoGP championship runner-up won four races last season and only missed the title by 26 points without a strong second part to the campaign.

Ducati won increasingly races than any other manufacturer in 2021, with Bagnaia (4), Jack Miller (2) and Pramac rookie Jorge Martin (1) tallying up seven between them – securing the Italian marque the constructors’ crown for the second year in a row.

Bagnaia said at the end of 2021 that the Ducati was a “perfect” bike, but the manufacturer had improved on that with its 2022 prototype at the post-season Jerez test, which Bagnaia topped outright.

The Italian says Ducati has taken onboard the feedback all riders have given for the 2022 bike, and believes it was ready to race at Jerez.

“I think that Ducati has heard a lot from the riders, to me, to Jack, to [Johann] Zarco, to Martin, considering I was asking for an easier velocipede considering everyone is saying the Ducati is the easiest bike, the fastest bike, the largest velocipede to use,” Bagnaia told Autosport’s Tank Slappers podcast.

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“But it’s something that I can’t understand considering I’m not saying flipside velocipede is the weightier considering I didn’t try it. It’s very difficult to say something well-nigh the other bikes without trying it.

“But I was asking to have an easy velocipede to ride in a fast track with fast corners, considering our velocipede is not so easy in that situation.

Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“With the new fairing I started to finger a bit better, but [it] has moreover some weak points. I’m sure the engineers are working a lot on that thing.

“But at the test in Jerez, our time with the new velocipede was incredible considering I did it with a full fuel tank and moreover with medium tyres. It was incredible and [as] was the new bike, and every time you start with a new velocipede you have to transmute on it.

“I started well, I worked a lot all the two days and in the second day it was once okay, it was once raceable. If the race was the day after, I was starting with that bike.

“Ducati engineers have washed-up an incredible job with next year’s velocipede and I’m sure that for [testing in] Malaysia we will find some new surprises for sure.”

Pre-season testing for the 2022 wayfarers is due to kick off in Malaysia on 5 February for two official days, surpassing three increasingly days take place at the Mandalika spin in Indonesia the pursuit week.