Gigi Dall’Igna is the mastermind behind Ducati’s historic run of MotoGP wins. How did he do it and how will he prepare for what’s to come with new riders and rules?
Gigi Dall’Igna is the master puppeteer of Ducati Corse and his genius has delivered a third consecutive MotoGP world championship. The history-making three-peat reinforces Dall’igna’s status as the primary influencer of the current tech-heavy era of MotoGP.
The numbers are staggering for the Ducati Desmosedici, MotoGP’s benchmark bike. In 2024 Ducati won 19 of 20 grands prix with Spaniard Jorge Martín claiming his first premier class championship. This followed two in row by Pecco Bagnaia (2022-23). Bagnaia was edged by just 10 points to second place overall with the imposing Ducati clean sweep completed by Marc Marquez (third) and Enea Bastianini (fourth). Only Aprilia snatched a single GP win at CoTA in Texas before Ducati won the next 17 GPs straight.
Across the consecutive championships (2022-24) Ducati won 48 of 60 GPs, an astonishing win rate of 80 percent.
Dall’Igna has orchestrated this domination as the boss of the Borgo Panigale squad. He pulls all the strings on engineering and design development of the Desmosedici, plus the hiring and firing of riders. It’s a rare skillset and Dall’Igna has a reputation as a hard marker. On both fronts he is an innovative risk taker.
High flyer’s wings clipped
Under Dall’Igna’s leadership, Ducati assembled both an intimidating line-up of riders and dazzling development of ground-breaking aerodynamics, ride-height devices and tech gadgets. And the gloriously potent Desmosedici V4.
That created history but perhaps there is no greater accolade for Dall’Igna’s pervasive role as a tech guru than the new MotoGP rule set for 2027. They reflect Dall’Igna’s deep impact.
Many of the changes will ban or curtail his innovations or tighten loopholes that he has cleverly exploited. Ride height and launch control devices that enhance wheelie control and traction will be illegal, with a significant cutback on aerodynamic fairings and winglets. And the new 850cc engine capacity is, at least initially, predicted to reduce the mind boggling 350+ km/h speeds pioneered by the 1000cc Desmosedici.
Dall’Igna is not resting on Ducati’s triple crown and plans to have the first prototype of the all-new Ducati GP27 on the test track next year. This huge revamp of regulations will come at enormous cost to manufacturers signing up the next five-year MotoGP contract from 2027. A complete redesign on engines, frames and layouts will be necessary and it has triggered a two-year freeze on development from the first race of 2025.
There will be exceptions for Honda and Yamaha as they qualify for catch-up concessions for their currently underperforming RC213V and M1.
“The cost issue is a major problem for everyone, also because on an economic level we will face two complicated years, looking at what is happening right now in the world,” Dall’Igna told AMCN. “To develop a completely new engine for 2027 or, rather, a whole new bike, since there will no longer be ride-height adjusters and the aerodynamics will be limited.
“There will be many changes and to develop those at the same time as the current bike would have been quite complicated, especially for European manufacturers.”
Despite that pause on development there is little expectation that Ducati’s performance will decline next season.
Dall’Igna says he still has some tricks “in the drawer” to roll out for the GP25 and the Ducati Corse factory squad will be overloaded with talent and motivation: Bagnaia will be joined six-time MotoGP champion Marquez in the factory team. An awesome line-up, MotoGP’s strongest, with a combined eight premier class championships and 91 GP wins.
Dall’Igna has identified a bump-up in top-end engine performance and better mid-corner speed as key targets for the GP25, which will be an evolution of the GP24, maintaining the strong points of this year’s championship bike. “The braking point and stability are now key, you need that for overtaking, that is really difficult now,” Dall’Igna said.
A fourth consecutive MotoGP title is the goal for 2025 but Dall’Igna does not expect to repeat the superiority of the historic top-six result at the Australian GP at Phillip Island this year. That feat was last delivered by Honda at the French GP in 1997 during the glory years of the untouchable NSR500.
Ducati will have six bikes on the 2025 grid, down from eight, with the switch of the 2024 title-winning Pramac team to Yamaha.
“Next year it will be impossible to get results like Japan (top five) and Australia,” Dall’Igna concedes.
“But even monopolising the podium like we have done lately will be more difficult. Ducati comes out well especially from a sporting point with these results.”
After they fell short of expectations this year, Dall’Igna anticipates a renewed challenge from KTM and Aprilia in 2025, with Honda and Yamaha again having the benefit of generous engine, aero and test concessions.
“The advantages that the others have, especially Honda and Yamaha, are many, so I expected to have to suffer a bit more this season,” he said. “That’s why we took a few more risks at the start of the year, knowing that the others could progress during the season and we couldn’t. And our risk obviously paid off.
“Every time I perceive a slight reduction in performance or that the gap with the others is closing, I push my guys significantly. These championships are a big thanks to all the Ducati Corse staff.”
The Rivalry: Bagnaia vs Martin
An untouchable technical package weaponised another captivating Bagnaia vs Martin contest, with Martin reversing his defeat of 2023. Bagnaia, groomed for stardom by Valentino Rossi but educated in the intricacies of maximising Desmosedici performance by Dall’Igna, is a special talent. The Italian is now one of only five riders to win 11 or more GPs in a season, joining Rossi, Marquez, Mick Doohan and Giacomo Agostini in that exclusive club.
“I think Pecco can write many important pages in motorcycling history,” Dall’Igna observes. “Pecco won two world championships in a row and there are not many riders who can say they have done the same. And this year he was fighting for the third. Right now, he is the rider of reference in MotoGP”.
Rivalling that was Martin’s speed and consistency, boosted by his growing maturity and resilience – although the difference to Bagnaia was often immeasurable. Proof is the fact that just 10 points separated the pair in the championship, with Martin winning three GPs.
Dall’Igna adds: “Jorge is certainly very fast. In some races he was faster than Pecco, but in others Pecco was certainly faster. In addition, Pecco has a vision of the race that is superior to the other riders at the moment.
“From a mental point of view Jorge has definitely improved. Pecco showed that growth in 2023. Now it was Jorge’s turn.”
Bagnaia remains the darling of the Ducatisti, now with more Desmosedici wins (29) than Casey Stoner (23).
Martin, the explosive and intensely ambitious Spaniard who won the title with factory-backed independent team Pramac, departs with the No. 1 for Italian rivals Aprilia in 2025.
Intriguingly in grand prix racing there was a rare combination of edginess and politeness between the pair, with an enthralling opening three laps in Malaysia the only hand-to-hand combat.
“Rather than polite, I would call it fair,” Dall’Igna said. “In the two years they fought for the title I never saw any wrongdoing between them. And we had total data sharing with Ducati engineers doing the same for Pecco and Jorge.”
Dall’Igna also refutes the conspiracy theories that 2024 would not be a level playing field, with Ducati favouring factory man Bagnaia. An updated chassis run at the September Misano tests – Bagnaia preferred it and hoped to race it late season – was withheld because Ducati could not supply all factory riders.
“Maybe someone else would have made different choices,” said Dall’Igna. “And these people have never looked at what’s happened in my history. In the end, this is a sport, and should remain a sport. For me, the best rider has to win.
“To have a fair fight for the championship between these two riders was important to me. As well as beautiful. And I think it’s significant that we didn’t bring any technical developments for the last races, thus preventing one from being treated better than the other”.
Dall’Igna’s take on the challenges Honda faces in 2025
Unnerving for rivals is the confirmation that Dall’Igna is set to continue in his role as Ducati Corse supremo. A year ago Dall’Igna rejected overtures from Honda Racing Corporation in a bid to rehabilitate the embarrassing decline of the RC213V that had carried Marquez to six MotoGP titles. For six decades Honda had jealously guarded their grand prix DNA, a showcase for HRC’s in-house brand of engineering excellence.
But HRC were humiliated as late adopters of the aero and ride heights systems led by Ducati and then KTM and Aprilia, and they sought European intervention. While Dall’Igna admitted a move to Honda would have been “an interesting challenge”, he declined the offer to remain in control of his winning empire at Borgo Panigale. Even the plan for Honda to set up a satellite tech office in Milan and a mega budget was not enough. Facing the challenge of invigorating the entrenched culture of HRC’s methods also influenced his decision.
The man now in the Honda hot seat is Romano Albesiano, who departs Aprilia. Albesiano and Dall’Igna were previously long-serving colleagues at Noale, which included the hugely successful RSV-4 Superbike.
“Romano’s is a big challenge,” Dall’Igna said. “Financially he will certainly have more possibilities, but he will also have to deal with a completely different mentality and working philosophy. I don’t think it will be easy. It takes time to get a structure up and running. You have to have the right people to be able to express ideas, concepts, new solutions. And you don’t do that overnight.”
Dall’Igna is under no illusions that the championship campaign in 2025 is Ducati’s for the taking. Aprilia and KTM will be fortified by the arrival of top riders, not least the talent drain from Ducati, including the newly-crowned champion.
Joining Martin in the exit will be Enea Bastianini to KTM and Marco Bezzecchi to Aprilia. The issue is not Ducati performance being down to six bikes but that “other manufacturers will have these better riders”.
But there are no regrets on the rider market forces triggered when Dall’Igna made the difficult choice, strong armed by Marquez, to sign him to the factory team. Who else but Dall’Igna could conceive that with the best bike in MotoGP he would need to risk destabilising Ducati Corse by adding the intensity and polemics of Marquez to the factory squad in 2025? And casting aside the talent-laden Martin in the process! Dall’Igna knew Martin could be champion, evaluated the options and made a tough call.
With Bagnaia and Marquez in tandem next year, Dall’Igna is unrepentant: “I’m convinced we have the best possible solution for Ducati riders.”
Aprilia will be exposed to similarly huge expectations with Martin and the No. 1 plate on the RS GP for his title defence.
Dall’Igna is not alone in being fascinated to see just what Marquez – 62 MotoGP wins and six titles – can do on the latest factory-spec Ducati Desmosedici. This season on a superseded GP23 at the Gresini team, Dall’Igna got an insight: Marquez defying the odds on a year-old bike.
“Marc has done more than what I expected this year but he can grow some more,” Dall’Igna said. “From the point view of speed I still think he has something to show.”
2024 BY THE NUMBERS
World titles
• Won the MotoGP World Title for the third consecutive season.
• This marks Ducati’s fourth Riders’ World Title in the premier class.
• Won the Constructors’ World Championship for the fifth consecutive year, with a total of 722 points, 327 points ahead of the runner-up.
Race victories and records
• Became the only European brand to surpass 100 wins in MotoGP, ending the season with 106 victories.
• Won 19 out of 20 Grand Prix races in 2024.
Podiums
• Set a new record with 53 podium finishes, 10 more than the previous season.
• Monopolised the podium on 14 occasions, bringing Ducati’s total number of top-class podium sweeps to 23.
• Six Ducati riders finished on the podium at least once: Jorge Martin (16), Francesco Bagnaia (16), Marc Marquez (10), Enea Bastianini (9), Alex Marquez (1) and Marco Bezzecchi (1).
Consistency
• Achieved a streak of 66 consecutive MotoGP races with at least one rider finishing in the Top 3.
• Had at least one bike on the front row of the grid in 80 consecutive races.
Pole positions
• Secured 16 pole positions.
• Ducati achieved its 100th premier class pole position at the Indonesia GP.
