Ducati borrowed Aprilia swingarm aero for Márquez’s GP26 at Phillip Island
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 24, 2026
Ducati swingarm aero
Ducati added a new aerodynamic package to Marc Márquez’s Desmosedici GP26 swingarm at Phillip Island, a move that showed how far the factory is willing to go to keep chasing performance from rival ideas. The latest piece closely resembled a concept already used by Aprilia on the RS-GP, and Ducati designed it to improve rear stability and airflow. The change fit a broader pattern for the team. Ducati had already leaned on Aprilia-inspired rear aero parts earlier in the season at Austin, where it ran seat wings and a tail-wing element on both Márquez’s bike and Francesco Bagnaia’s machine. That willingness to borrow from another benchmark underlined how closely the top MotoGP manufacturers now watch one another. Aprilia has earned a reputation as one of the series’ technical standards, and Ducati’s latest update showed that even a team keeps searching the paddock for ideas that can sharpen its own package. The swingarm revision did not arrive as a cosmetic tweak. It targeted the kind of rear-end behavior that can shape confidence under braking, drive out of corners and overall consistency over a race distance.
Phillip Island practice
Aprilia riders set the pace in Friday practice at Phillip Island, and the session gave Ducati a clear reference point as the weekend opened. Marco Bezzecchi topped the order, Raúl Fernández followed in second and Márquez was third after leading the first practice session earlier in the day. Bagnaia settled for 14th, a result that left Ducati with a split picture across its garage even as the factory tested its latest aero direction. Jorge Martin also stayed in the title conversation by finishing fifth in the afternoon session and holding a two-point edge over Márquez in the 2026 MotoGP championship. That standing gave the weekend an added layer of importance for Ducati, which is still balancing technical development with the pressure of the title fight. The fact that Márquez could lead one session and then slide to third in the next suggested that Friday pace would not settle the bigger questions by itself. The opening day showed that the field arrived with enough variation to keep the competitive order fluid. Aprilia’s strong showing also gave added weight to the comparison between the two manufacturers’ approaches, since Ducati’s latest rear aero update was aimed at improving stability and airflow.
Márquez support
Márquez backed Ducati’s decision to use Aprilia-inspired aerodynamic ideas after Friday practice, and he did not push back on the logic behind the update. He said Ducati cannot be arrogant about learning from rivals, a blunt assessment that matched the practical tone of his comments after the session. Márquez also said the new rear swingarm aero did not feel worse when he tried it, which gave Ducati some immediate confirmation that the part belonged on the bike rather than in the notebook. He added that the team was working hard with five rounds left to improve and fight for the title, a reminder that every technical gain still has to serve the championship picture. Weather could also shape the rest of the weekend. Márquez said rain could affect the event and that Ducati was prepared if conditions turned wet. His remarks tied together the two big themes of the day, the factory’s willingness to adapt and the pressure to keep pushing in the title race. Ducati’s latest move did not stand alone. It came with evidence from practice that Aprilia had the speed, with Márquez acknowledging the value of borrowing the right ideas when they can help the bike stay stable, stay efficient and stay in the fight.
