MotoGP: Ducati Undergoes Significant Management Changes as Paolo Ciabatti Departs Factory Team

Ducati officially announced the departure of Paolo Ciabatti, a prevalent figure in the position of sporting director for its MotoGP team. Ciabatti will be shifting his attention to the motocross programme at the brand, hence he is resigning from the sporting director role. As a result of his departure, Mauro Grassilli will take up the position of sporting director for the MotoGP team.

Ciabatti, 66 years old, has a long career with Ducati. He was the director of the MotoGP project and the Superbike programme before taking on the post of sporting director in 2014. During his time at the helm, Ducati won several MotoGP championships, starting with Casey Stoner's 2007 victory. In 2022, with Francesco Bagnaia clinching the title, Ciabatti was an integral part of the managerial structure that brought Ducati back to championship glory.

Ducati won 17 of 20 Grand Prix races in 2023, which was an important year for the company. In addition, Bagnaia and the other two riders from Ducati swept the first three spots in the riders' standings. With Pramac Racing, the team not only won the team's championship but also the constructors' crown. In addition, with Alvaro Bautista at the wheel, Ducati won the World Superbike championship for the second year in a row.

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Paolo Ciabatti's New Role

With the launch of Ducati's off-road operations in 2024, Paolo Ciabatti will take over as general manager and lead the company's entry into the motocross racing sector. After a successful debut in domestic events in 2019, Ducati intends to step up its involvement in the MXGP World Championship and the AMA Supercross Championship in the years to come.

Even though he's moving on, Ciabatti will stay in touch with Ducati's road racing branch and help organise the brand's races in MotoAmerica, the All Japan Superbike series, British Superbikes, the Australian Superbike championship, and the Italian CIV series.

Mauro Grassilli, who had previously served as the head of sports, marketing, and communications for Ducati's top racing division, MotoGP, has succeeded Ciabatti in the position of sporting director of Ducati Corse.

MotoGP: About Mauro Grassilli

As mentioned previously, Ducati Corse named Mauro Grassilli as their new director of communications, marketing, and sports. With Paolo Ciabatti's promotion to General Manager of the new Ducati Corse Off-Road subsidiary, Grassilli has taken on more responsibility while continuing to carry out his former duties with ease.

At the forthcoming Campioni in Pista event, Grassilli is set to make his first public appearance, joining Ciabatti in revealing Ducati's racing plans for 2024.

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With the strong basis laid in earlier years, Ducati's plans to defend Francesco Bagnaia's MotoGP title in 2024 are unlikely to be seriously derailed, even with current organisational changes.