Franco Morbidelli described the season-opening Thai MotoGP as “two races” after battling back from another poor start to finish eighth.
The VR46 rider qualified on the outside of the third row but lost ground early and finished 14th in the Sprint.
Sunday’s grand prix then saw Morbidelli drop to 19th on the opening lap, even worse than at the start of the Sprint.
“Clearly, it looked like two races for us. I really had an awful start again, we’ve been struggling quite a lot with the new package for starting,” Morbidelli told MotoGP.com.
The Italian began to make progress from lap six of the 26-lap race but was still just 15th at the halfway stage.
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“I was 19th until lap five, and I was struggling pretty much. And then I caught my rhythm, and I started to recover,” he said.
2026 Thai MotoGP lap times: Ducati (full time riders)
© Peter McLaren
Morbidelli’s comeback gathered momentum in the closing stages – where he was faster than all Ducati riders barring Marc Marquez – culminating in a last-lap pass on factory Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia for eighth place.
“I recovered many positions, until arriving in P8. So I’d say the first part of the race wasn’t good, but after that it became very strong and solid.
“I had a bit of a grip issue. In this race, the tyres were consuming quickly, and the feeling wasn’t at its best, but I managed it well.
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“Overall, it was a weekend of ups and downs. There are some aspects of the new package we still need to work on in depth. But there’s definitely a very good potential.”
VR46 team manager Pablo Nieto praised the comeback but admitted the starts need addressing.
“Franco made an incredible comeback… We need to try to improve the opening laps. Now we go back home to recharge and work ahead of the next race in Brazil.”
The inaugural MotoGP event in Goiania will hold special significance for Morbidelli, whose mother is Brazilian.
Team-mate Fabio di Giannantonio was Ducati’s top finisher in Thailand, taking sixth place after a late retirement for Marc Marquez.
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