MotoGP News: Francesco Bagnaia Heartbroken As He Watched Max Verstappen Win Fourth Title

Alex Harrington | Dec 17, 2024

Apr 14, 2024; Austin, TX, USA; Francesco Bagnaia (1) of Italy and Ducati Lenovo Team rides in warmups before the start of the MotoGP Grand Prix of The Americas at Circuit of The Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Ducati MotoGP rider Francesco Bagnaia confessed that losing the championship to Jorge Martin in the season finale at Barcelona was difficult to accept. Days later, witnessing Max Verstappen secure his fourth F1 title added to the sting, serving as a harsh reminder of his own missed opportunity. Martin's triumph ended Bagnaia's hopes of claiming a third consecutive MotoGP crown.

Verstappen sealed the 2024 championship at the Las Vegas Grand Prix after an intense second-half season battle with McLaren's Lando Norris, marking the first real title showdown of the ground-effect era that began in 2022. While the Dutchman’s triumph extinguished Norris’ hopes of securing his first championship, it also resonated with Bagnaia in the world of two-wheeled racing. The Ducati rider admitted feeling a sense of disappointment, as Verstappen's victory served as a painful reminder of his own title loss to Martin just days earlier.

Bagnaia's issue wasn't with Verstappen winning the championship, but rather with the very spectacle of a title victory, which brought back painful memories of the 2024 MotoGP season finale that decided his own fate. The Italian rider was still coming to terms with his defeat, but Verstappen's triumph served as a harsh reminder, reopening the emotional wounds of his championship loss. Describing his ordeal, Bagnaia said:

“In these weeks the most difficult moment was when I saw Verstappen win the title, because it was his fourth.

He added:

"I simply thought about the fact that I too could have been a four-time world champion and it brought me back to the defeat a bit. 

“But I'm living it a bit like an opportunity: I know we lost, but I know why we lost it and that already makes the difference.”

Verstappen's championship triumph in Las Vegas elevated him into an elite group of F1 legends with a comparable title count. Reflecting on the season that earned him his fourth crown, he said at the FIA Awards Ceremony in Rwanda:

“This season as you could see was quite up and down.

“We had a great start to the year, everything was looking great. I think especially from the outside, of course, as a team you always understand your limitations and what you want to work on.

“The competition did a great job, they improved their cars a lot and made it a lot more difficult for us – especially in the constructors’.

“We had a bit of a tough run in the middle of the season but even when we were under pressure, and having tough times, I think the team really stuck together. We didn’t panic, which could easily be done I think in those kinds of situations.

"At the end of the day I’m just very proud of everyone in the team as well. Of course we’re not standing here as constructors’ champions but, in a way, I do think we deserved a little bit more in that championship.

“I tried my very best and we also know a lot what we have to work on for next year. I’m very excited about that as well because it does look like it’s going to be a proper fight between a lot of teams.”