Francesco Bagnaia facts for kids

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Francesco Bagnaia

Bagnaia at the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix

Nationality

Italian

Born

14 January 1997 (age 28)
Turin, Italy

Current team

Ducati Lenovo Team

Bike number

Motorcycle racing career statistics

MotoGP World Championship

Active years

2019–

Manufacturers

Ducati

Championships

2 (2022, 2023)

2024 championship position

2nd (498 pts)

Starts	Wins	Podiums	Poles	F. laps	Points
106	29	51	24	18	1583

Moto2 World Championship

Active years

2017–2018

Manufacturers

Kalex

Championships

1 (2018)

2018 championship position

1st (306 pts)

Starts	Wins	Podiums	Poles	F. laps	Points
36	8	16	6	3	480

Moto3 World Championship

Active years

2013–2016

Manufacturers

FTR Honda (2013)
KTM (2014)
Mahindra (2015–2016)

Championships

2016 championship position

4th (145 pts)

Starts	Wins	Podiums	Poles	F. laps	Points
69	2	7	1	2	271

Francesco "Pecco" Bagnaia (born 14 January 1997) is an Italian motorcycle racer. He competes in MotoGP for the Ducati Lenovo Team. Pecco is a two-time MotoGP World Champion, winning titles in 2022 and 2023.

Before his MotoGP success, Bagnaia was the 2018 Moto2 World Champion. He is the first rider from Valentino Rossi's VR46 Riders Academy to win a top-class world title. His 2022 win was also special for Ducati, being their first championship in 15 years. It was also the first for an Italian rider since Valentino Rossi in 2009.

Pecco's Racing Journey
Life Off the Track
Images for kids
See also

Pecco's Racing Journey

Starting Out: Early Career

Francesco Bagnaia was born in Turin, Italy. He started riding small "Minimoto" bikes when he was very young. In 2009, he won the European MiniGP championship, showing his talent early on.

In 2010, he raced in the pre-GP 125 Mediterranean championship and finished second overall. The next year, he competed in the Spanish Championships in the 125cc class, winning one race and finishing third in the standings. In 2012, he rode a Honda NSF250R in the 2012 CEV Moto3 season and again finished third. He won one race and got two second-place finishes. Bagnaia then joined the famous VR46 Riders Academy, which helps young riders.

Moto3 World Championship Adventures

Bagnaia began his Grand Prix journey in the 2013 Moto3 World Championship. He rode a Honda for Team Italia FMI. This first season was tough, and he didn't score any points in 17 races. His best finish was 16th place.

Bagnaia at the 2013 British Grand Prix

In 2014, Bagnaia joined the new Sky Racing Team by VR46 and rode a KTM. He improved a lot, finishing in the top 10 five times in the first seven races. His best result was a fourth place at Le Mans, where he also set the fastest lap. He finished the season in 16th place with 50 points.

For 2015, Bagnaia switched to the Aspar Team and rode a Mahindra. He earned his first podium finish at Le Mans, coming in third. He almost got another podium at Mugello, missing it by just 0.003 seconds. Despite some ups and downs, he finished 14th in the championship with 76 points.

The 2016 season was a big one for Pecco. He started with two third-place finishes in Qatar and Jerez. At his home race in Italy, he again finished third. Then, at the famous Assen circuit, he won his first Grand Prix race. This was also the first win for Mahindra! He had four podiums in the first eight races. Bagnaia also got his first pole position at Silverstone and finished second. He won his second race of the season at Sepang. He ended the season in fourth place in the Moto3 Championship with two wins and six podiums.

Moto2 World Champion

After four seasons in Moto3, Bagnaia moved up to Moto2 in 2017, rejoining Sky Racing Team VR46. In only his fourth Moto2 race at Jerez, he finished second. He got another second place at Le Mans and a third at Sachsenring. He was named Moto2 Rookie of the Year and finished his first season in fifth place with 174 points.

Bagnaia leading the race at the 2018 Japanese Grand Prix

The 2018 season was amazing for Bagnaia. He started with a win in Qatar, leading the race from start to finish. He won again in Austin after a tough fight. He took his first Moto2 pole position at Le Mans and won that race too. Pecco won a total of eight races that season, including a thrilling victory at Motegi. After finishing third at Sepang, he was crowned the Moto2 World Champion! He finished every single Moto2 race he entered, scoring points in 34 of them.

Reaching MotoGP: The Premier Class

Pramac Racing (2019–2020)

In 2019, Bagnaia moved up to the top class, MotoGP, with Pramac Ducati. He had been offered a MotoGP ride earlier but chose to stay in Moto2 to win the championship.

His first MotoGP season in 2019 had some challenges. He scored his first points in Argentina, finishing 14th. He then finished ninth in Austin. His best result of the season was a fourth place at Phillip Island, missing the podium by a tiny margin. He finished his rookie MotoGP season in 15th place with 54 points.

The 2020 season was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Bagnaia had a strong start at Jerez, finishing seventh. In the next race, he was on track for his first MotoGP podium but had to retire due to an engine problem. He later broke his leg in practice and missed two races. When he returned, he earned his first MotoGP podium at Misano, finishing second. He ended the season in 16th place with 47 points.

Ducati Lenovo Team (2021–present)

Becoming a Champion

Bagnaia at the 2021 Algarve Grand Prix

In 2021, Bagnaia moved to the factory Ducati team, the Ducati Lenovo Team. He started the season well, getting his first MotoGP pole position in Qatar and finishing third in the race. He continued to show strong form, with two more second-place finishes in Portugal and Spain.

Bagnaia achieved his first MotoGP win at Aragon, leading the entire race from pole position. He repeated this amazing feat the very next weekend in Rimini, winning again from pole. He secured a third-place finish in Austin. He had a great run of five consecutive pole positions. He won two more races at Portimao and Valencia. He finished the season in second place in the championship, just behind Fabio Quartararo.

Bagnaia (#63) at the 2022 Indonesian Grand Prix

The 2022 season started tough for Bagnaia. He crashed out of the first race in Qatar and finished 15th in Indonesia. However, he turned his season around dramatically. He dominated the Jerez weekend, taking pole position and winning the race. He also won his home race at Mugello.

After being 91 points behind the championship leader, Fabio Quartararo, Bagnaia went on an incredible winning streak. He won four races in a row: Assen, Silverstone, Red Bull Ring, and Misano. This was a historic achievement for a Ducati rider. He closed the gap to Quartararo significantly.

Despite a crash in Japan, Bagnaia kept fighting. He finished third in Thailand and Australia, while Quartararo struggled. At the Malaysian Grand Prix, Pecco won his seventh race of the season. The championship came down to the final race in Valencia. There, Bagnaia won his first MotoGP World Championship! He made history by overcoming the largest points deficit ever to win the premier class title.

Defending the Title

Bagnaia continued with Ducati in 2023. He was in a close championship battle with Jorge Martín for most of the season. They both won many sprint and main races. Bagnaia managed to keep the championship lead for almost the entire season. He won the championship at the final race in Valencia after Martín crashed. This made Bagnaia a two-time MotoGP World Champion. He was the first Ducati rider to win back-to-back championships and the only rider in the MotoGP era to do so after Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez.

Bagnaia at the 2024 Malaysian Grand Prix

For the 2024 season, Bagnaia extended his contract with Ducati until 2026. He continued to win races, reaching his 25th premier class victory at the Austrian Grand Prix. He won eight feature races, breaking his personal record. Despite his many wins, he finished as the championship runner-up in 2024, just behind Jorge Martin. His 11 wins in 2024 were the most by any rider in a single premier class season who didn't win the title.

In 2025, it was announced that eight-time World Champion Marc Márquez would be his new teammate at Ducati.

Life Off the Track

Francesco is known by his nickname Pecco. This name came from his older sister, Carola, who couldn't say "Francesco" when she was learning to talk. The nickname has stayed with him ever since.

Francesco Bagnaia married his longtime girlfriend, Domizia Castagnini, on 20 July 2024, in Pesaro, Italy.