Is Ducati ready for its dream 100th victory on Sunday?

Saturday’s Gran Premio Pramac dell’Emilia-Romagna produced some sensational action, with Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) securing Tissot Sprint glory ahead of title rival Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing). The win allowed Bagnaia to overtake Martin by a further three points, reducing his lead to just four. Meanwhile, Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) claimed another Sprint podium, further extending his Misano success. With Ducati now occupying the front row of the grid, it would be the 100th factory Ducati in Bologna if a Ducati rider were to take victory on Sunday.^and victory in the premier class.

1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) has qualified on pole position for the third time this year, together with Assen and San Marino, and for his 100th MotoGP™ start, setting a new all-time lap record in Misano. This is his fourth pole at Misano in MotoGP™. He took his fourth Sprint win of 2024 and he will now be aiming for his fourth double (Sprint and GP wins) of 2024, as well as his eighth GP win of the year to make it his best MotoGP™ season in terms of victories. He is four points behind Jorge Martin in the championship.

2. If Bagnaia wins, he will become the first rider to take eight (or more) wins in a single MotoGP™ season since Marc Marquez in 2019 (12) and would join Marquez, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo as the only riders to have won eight or more Grand Prix races in a single MotoGP™ season.

3. If Ducati wins, it will be the 100th premier-class victory for the Bologna-based factory, their 13th in 2024, their seventh at Misano and fourth in a row at the circuit. It will be their 11th consecutive MotoGP™ victory, equaling their personal best from the 2023 San Marino GP to the 2024 Portuguese GP, a streak broken by Maverick Viñales and Aprilia at COTA (4). Ducati will clinch the premier-class manufacturers’ title for the sixth time if they finish the Grand Prix with a lead of 222 points or more. Their lead currently stands at 236 points, meaning they need a rider to finish fourth or better to secure the crown.

5. Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) has qualified second, making it the ninth time this year that he has qualified in the top three (and the first time since Austria). He finished P2 in the Sprint, for his 12th Sprint podium of 2024. After scoring one point last time out and losing 19 points to Bagnaia in his flag-to-flag gamble, he will be aiming for his eighth MotoGP™ victory in total and third of the season. He still leads the championship by 4 points over Bagnaia.

6. Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) is fourth in the championship and has qualified third for his first top three in qualifying since Silverstone, when he also qualified in P3 on his way to the double (Sprint and GP wins). He took his second Sprint podium of the year (after his maiden Sprint win at Silverstone) and finished in P3. Sunday’s victory would be his seventh MotoGP™ win, equalling Martin and Loris Capirossi for fourth place in the list of most successful Ducati riders in the class. It would also be his fifth podium in five visits to the circuit in MotoGP™.

7. Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) has qualified seventh after crashing in both FP2 and Q2. He finished P4 in the Sprint and will now be aiming for three wins in a row for the first time since 2019, when he took five straight victories from San Marino to Australia. It would be his sixth MotoGP™ victory at Misano, extending his lead as the rider with the most wins at the circuit.

8. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) qualified P5 for his fifth top six in qualifying this year. He finished P5 in the Sprint and turned 20 years and 120 days old on Sunday. He will be trying to become the second youngest winner of the premier class after Marc Marquez (20 years and 63 days old in Austin in 2013).

9. Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) has qualified eighth and finished tenth in the Sprint, both times as the best Aprilia rider. He would be aiming for his 11th MotoGP™ GP victory and his second with Aprilia together with Austin this season.

10. After securing his first consecutive Q2 of the season, Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) has qualified ninth, which is his second-best qualifying so far this season from Portugal, after France when he qualified eighth. He finished P7 in the Sprint and will now be aiming for his first podium since Indonesia last year (P3). He will also be aiming for his and Yamaha’s best result of the year so far if he can improve on the P7 he achieved here last time out and in Portugal.

Can Ducati secure a fairytale 100?^and win in the premier class? Make sure you tune in to the Emilia-Romagna GP on Sunday, with lights out at 13:00 local time (UTC +2)