Ducati: “It’s too early to know” whether Bautista will be given MotoGP wildcard

After completing a very promising first day of testing aboard Ducati’s factory MotoGP bike at Misano, Alvaro Bautista and Gigi Dall’Igna have given their thoughts on a possible wildcard entry later in the year.

Robert Jones

21 Jun 2023

Alvaro Bautista, Ducati MotoGP Misano test 2023

Bautista’s full focus remains on WorldSBK as he appears destined to make it back-to-back world championship wins.

Winner of 14 out of a possible 15 races so far this season, Bautista has been untouchable for much of the campaign which is why he leads Toprak Razgatlioglu by 86 points.

While the test aboard Ducati’s latest MotoGP machine is a reward for winning the Superbike title in 2022, rumours have persisted that it could lead to a wildcard.

On top of that, Bautista is said to have posted very fast lap times after just a few laps, which could boost his chance even further.

Speaking about the two-day test, Ducati Corse General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna said: "This is an important test because this is a reward for last year’s achievement. I’m really happy to see Alvaro here and I’m happy to see him enjoying our bike.

"Honestly, it’s one of the best days of the year. This is only a reward for what he did last season. That’s it.

"He asked me to test the bike and he used the old version of this bike some years ago. He wanted to know what changed and what his sensation is with the bike."

Dall’Igna was also asked about the possibility of doing a wildcard, to which he remained tight-lipped.

"It’s too early to know. The season is really long and we will probably arrive at the end really exhausted. We will see but this is not our target at the moment."

Like Dall’Igna, Bautista was keen not to be drawn on the subject of doing a wildcard later in the season, however, he did admit that his feeling with the Desmosedici was ‘really good’.

Bautista added: "I don’t have in my mind anything because, in the end, in my whole career, this is my first time having a real test with a factory MotoGP bike and team.

"This is something amazing. I’ve never had this chance in my life. I raced at Phillip Island five years ago, but it was like ‘you race this weekend’, so I didn’t prepare for that.

"I’m so happy to ride this bike again. The feeling from the first lap was really good. I understood the bike very well. I’m having a lot of fun."