Francesco Bagnaia “rising back”, “able to fight Marc Marquez for the first time”

Francesco Bagnaia says “seven laps better than zero” as he arrives at Assen looking to build on an improved performance at Mugello, where he briefly battled with factory Ducati team-mate Marc Marquez.

The double world champion faded to fourth in his home Italian MotoGP after an early tussle for the lead, but believes the weekend offered a much-needed step in his quest to find front-end feeling with the GP25.

“We had positives in Mugello, honestly,” Francesco Bagnaia told MotoGP.com. “We calmed a bit my bike, it was more stable, so this is great.

“I was able to fight against Marc for the first time this season. Just for seven laps, but it’s better than zero.

“So this is positive, and I just want to restart from there and try to enjoy this weekend because it’s one of the best tracks for me.”

Bagnaia, who took his first grand prix victory in Moto3 at Assen in 2016, is undefeated in the last three Dutch MotoGP races and also won the 2024 Sprint.

While Mugello’s fast and flowing layout prevented the use of the larger 355mm front brake discs that helped improve stability in Aragon, Bagnaia said other changes - that he'll carry over to Assen - had made a difference.

“It was a bit better because it was more stable. This season, I’m struggling a lot with the movement from the front. It’s the first time this is happening so we weren’t prepared to solve it,” he said.

“What we did in Mugello were some little details that helped me a bit, and for this race weekend we will just try to continue in the same direction and maybe it will help more.”

Pecco Bagnaia: "We are rising back"

Cooler conditions at Assen could also aid the Italian, after high temperatures at Mugello left many riders battling low grip.

“I think so… But let’s see if we can be competitive from the start,” Bagnaia said.

“I think this track is arriving at the correct moment, where our situation is not the best, but we are rising back. 

"I just want to enjoy and try to work maybe in a different way, but be competitive and prepared for the races.”

Bagnaia, currently third in the championship standings, trails Marc Marquez by 110 points and Gresini’s Alex Marquez by 70.