How Did Ducati Fare on MXGP Racing Debut?

Ducati has dominated the two biggest motorcycle world championships in recent years, MotoGP and World Superbike, but when it comes to off-road racing, the Italian brand is only now finding its feet.

The Desmosedici GP bike and Panigale V4 R are beasts in their own right, just ask the riders on other bikes that have had the monumental task of trying to beat them since 2022 onwards. But in motocross we look at KTM and Husqvarna as two of the top dogs.

Breaking into a new category of racing can’t be easy, in fact, it took Ducati many years to become consistent threats to the likes of Honda and Yamaha in MotoGP, while in World Superbike it would have been more appropriate to call it the Kawasaki World Championship thanks to Jonathan Rea’s success from 2015-2020.

But Ducati officially made its MXGP debut in the Netherlands last weekend, after beginning its foray into motocross by taking part in the Italian championship. Nine-time world champion Tony Cairoli was the man aboard Ducati’s Desmo450 MX bike and although he came away with only 15th in race one, more potential was shown as he battled for eighth in race two before suffering a DNF.

Speaking afterwards, Cairoli said: “We bring home an excellent test for the bike. Before the GP we did three weeks of testing between Holland and Belgium but the conditions of today's track were very far from those found in the various tests.

“Our goal was to test the Desmo450 MX in extreme conditions and I had very positive feelings. Yesterday, in the Qualifying Race, we got a very good seventh place, which is a fantastic result for such a young bike.

“On Sunday I didn't get a good start in both heats, but in Race 2 I was in the top 10 and so I'm satisfied. After three years away from the GPs it was definitely not an easy race for me, especially on a difficult track like this.”