The 2026 MotoGP pre-season is officially underway, following three days of testing at the Sepang International Circuit this week.<\/p>\n
With 2026 marking the final year of the 1000cc regulations, there is a lot of anticipation about what teams will produce for their last bike of the current rules.<\/p>\n
Ducati<\/a> dominated the 2025 campaign, winning 17 grands prix on its way to the world championship with Marc Marquez, who was responsible for 11 of those victories.<\/p>\n But Ducati did have to face a growing threat from Aprilia<\/a>, particularly in the second half of the campaign.<\/p>\n As pre-season testing got underway, however, Ducati looks to have re-established itself a step ahead of the chasing pack with its updated GP26.<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n The new bike topped the test outright with Alex Marquez, while the Gresini rider, Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez completed promising race simulations on the GP26.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The overall feedback from the riders was that the front-end was more predictable, with the bike seemingly having a wider operating window compared to the GP25.<\/p>\n Aprilia continued to look strong, albeit with work to do, while KTM<\/a> appeared to be moving in the right direction.<\/p>\n The Austrian brand came through on its promise of a more aggressive development path for the RC16, which Pedro Acosta and Maverick Vinales gave optimistic feedback on at the end of the test.<\/p>\n