A “positive” Sepang MotoGP test for Francesco Bagnaia did not leave him without questions over his performance.

Bagnaia ended the test sixth-fastest on the combined times, behind his fellow Ducati riders Alex Marquez, Fabio Di Giannantonio, and Marc Marquez, as well as Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi and the Honda of Joan Mir.

But the Italian was pleased with his work during the three days, having told MotoGP.com after the first day that he felt he had rediscovered the front feeling he lost in the 2025 MotoGP season. 

There were questions Bagnaia had about his pace drop-off in the Sprint simulation he ran on day three, though.

“Positive,” Bagnaia gave as a summary of his test, speaking to MotoGP.com at the end of day three.

“Honestly, we worked well, we tested the things in a good way and, finally, when I did the simulation of the Sprint I was very happy because I was able to remain constant. I just lost a bit of time in the last three laps, and I already asked to the team to say to me what I did wrong to lose that amount of time. 

“But I’m quite sure that we did a very good job. All the things we tried are already more or less decided, so in Thailand we will have more clear ideas.”

Speaking in more detail about his Sprint simulation, which had a marginally better average lap time than Marc Marquez’s but slightly worse than Alex Marquez’s, and comparing it to his 2025 Sprint win, Bagnaia added: “Last year it’s true that I won, but I was struggling quite a bit here last year. I was out of the first 10 in the first day, then I did the pole position but with a not very fast lap, then the Sprint race was fast but not that fast. 

“So, here I was more comfortable on my bike, I was riding smoother and it was easier for me to remain constant with the lap times. But the condition was incredible and the more the time was going the more it was better. 

“So, we just decided to do the Sprint simulation in a more difficult moment with the temperature, but it was decided to have the worst condition. In any case, super-happy with the job done.”

One of the most obvious technical dilemmas Ducati was trying to resolve in Sepang was about its aerodynamic setup. Several options were used by all GP26 riders. One had an all-new setup, with the side-fairing introduced at Valencia with the front wings first used by Michele Pirro in the Shakedown; another was the Valencia side-fairing with the 2025 front wings; and both the full 2025 fairing and full 2024 fairings were also used throughout the test.

Bagnaia said the setup he was leaning towards was one which combined the “new fairings”.

“It’s a mix of new fairings,” he said. “It’s an update from the 2025, but similar. So, it’s not already decided, but I think if we were doing the race tomorrow I was deciding to go with the specification I was using in the simulation.”

Bagnaia was then asked if that is the 2024-style front wings with the new side fairing. The Italian responded: “More or less, yes.”

Finally, Bagnaia looked to the Buriram test on 21–22 February as one that will be important for him, having struggled at last year’s test there with technical issues that set him back.

“Thailand will be super-important,” he said. “Last year was a nightmare for me, so it’s important to start well on the test. 

“Working well, but not that much, using the base we had here and trying already to set some performance for the race weekend.”