Ducati copies Aprilia – Marco Bezzecchi: “Gigi Dall’Igna is a beast!”

For years, Ducati set the pace for technical developments in MotoGP. The competition watched closely to see what ideas Luigi ‘Gigi’ Dall’Igna and his engineers were bringing to the Desmosedici. During the Australian Grand Prix weekend at Phillip Island, however, the tables have turned: new aerodynamic elements on the swingarm of Marc Marquez’s factory Desmosedici are clearly reminiscent of a solution used by Aprilia.

The fact that the manufacturer, which has enjoyed such recent success, is taking its cue from its rival is no cause for ridicule for Marco Bezzecchi. The Aprilia works rider knows Dall’Igna from his time as a Ducati rider and understands the importance that even small improvements hold for the head of racing.

Bezzecchi praises Dall’Igna’s approach

“I haven’t seen the new parts. But Gigi is a force to be reckoned with. He’s really strong and I admire him greatly. Working with him was a real pleasure – seeing how much passion and effort he puts into every detail to be faster,” Bezzecchi told MotoGP.com.

Vorbild: Die Aeroelemente an der Aprilia RS-GP

Foto: Gold & Goose

This is one of Dall’Ignas’s strengths: the engineer, who has shaped Ducati’s development over the years with his own ideas, is not averse to adopting approaches from the competition. In the title race, what counts is whether a component enables progress. Where the original inspiration comes from is of secondary importance.

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For Aprilia, the obvious attention from their rival is also a sign of recognition. The RS-GP has evolved into a motorbike that offers technical solutions of interest even to Ducati. “We’ve mostly taken our cue from Ducati, but it’s wonderful to see this exchange,” noted Bezzecchi.

On the track on Friday, Aprilia underlined its own strength. Bezzecchi topped the qualifying session ahead of Raul Fernandez. Behind third-placed Marc Marquez came two more Aprilia riders: Ai Ogura and World Championship leader Jorge Martin. Ducati therefore faces a challenging task, particularly on the fast Phillip Island circuit.

Marc Marquez: It’s important to look beyond the immediate picture

Marquez kept the new parts on his Desmosedici after the initial tests. He didn’t want to pinpoint a specific advantage just yet, but saw them as a basis for further development work.

“I can’t say much about it. I left them on the bike because they didn’t make me feel any worse. If you try new things and they aren’t any worse, then that means they could lead to an improvement in the future. We need to understand the situation even better,” explained the Ducati factory rider.

Marc Marquez verwendete am Freitag neue Flügel an der Schwinge

Foto: Gold & Goose

For the defending champion, it is also important that the racing department continues to step up its efforts in the final stages of the World Championship. “What matters to me is that Ducati is working hard and giving it their all. We’ve still got five races to go and they’re continuing to bring in new things so that we can fight for the championship,” emphasised Márquez.

The Spaniard also gave a clear answer to the question of whether Ducati, as a technical pioneer, should even draw on its rivals’ ideas. “An engineer, a rider or a person shouldn’t be arrogant and rely solely on their own ideas. Sometimes you can learn from others, sometimes others learn from you. The important thing is to keep growing and improving yourself and your team. And that’s what we’re trying to do,” he explained. “It’s a competition. Everyone looks at what the others are doing. I do that too.”

Bezzecchi’s reaction shows that this technical rivalry does not diminish personal respect. Although he now competes against Ducati with Aprilia, he continues to speak very highly of his former technical boss. “I think Gigi is great. I know him very well. He’s a good bloke,” said the Italian.