Pecco Bagnaia’s disappointing start to the 2026 MotoGP season continued on Saturday at the Thai Grand Prix, as he struggled to 13th in qualifying and ninth in the sprint.

After the difficulties of the 2025 season, the factory Ducati rider looked like he was starting the new campaign with greater confidence and potential.

But he failed to lift himself out of Q1 on Saturday in qualifying and could only manage ninth in the 13-lap sprint, 6.9s off the race leader.

Pecco Bagnaia blamed his struggles on Friday on a set-up change not working as intended, but admits on Saturday he is simply unable to adapt to the current track conditions.

“It’s hard to explain,” he told Sky Italy.

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“The track is the same, the bike is the same.

“The conditions are definitely changing, and I’m not able to understand them, to exploit them as I should, but that’s my fault.

“I’m not feeling good, but it’s because I’m taking longer than I should to adapt to the situation.

“The grip is definitely less than in testing, you’re not riding alone, and that makes a big difference.

“And I’m trying to improve, I’m trying to figure out how to go better, but I’m the one who has to do it.”

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Bagnaia gets first points since 2025 Malaysian GP sprint

Ninth on Saturday at the Buriram marked Bagnaia’s first points since he won last October’s sprint at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

In his media scrum, he later explained that al Ducati riders are struggling on corner-entry at Buriram.

“The conditions have changed since the tests, and I haven’t been able to adapt,” he said.

“With used tyres, I felt pretty good, but I’m lacking the feeling on the flying lap.

“It’s different than in 2025; with all the Ducatis, we struggle to stop under braking and corner entry.

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“We still took a point, but if we look at last year’s sprint races, it went better. With three laps to go, I made a mistake and went wide at Turn 1.

“It’s a very fine line between braking well and not stopping at all. I need to readjust: during the tests, we took a direction that doesn’t pay off here, with this climate and this asphalt.

“It’s a long process, but I’m staying calm: I accept the situation and try to improve. Ultimately, today I scored more points than in the last five races of last season.”

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