Ducati's motorsport roots stretch back to 1951, when the company pursued speed records with the Cucciolo motorized bicycle. Road racing proper began in 1954 under engineer Fabio Taglioni. When MotoGP technical regulations changed to allow four-stroke engines from the 2002 season, Ducati decided to return to premier-class competition in 2003 under the banner "Ducati Marlboro Team," with Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi as riders. Capirossi won at Catalonia and finished fourth in the championship, with Ducati placing an impressive second in the Constructors' standings in only their first season back.
Casey Stoner joined Ducati for 2007 and proved an ideal match for the powerful but demanding Desmosedici. Stoner dominated the field, particularly on circuits with long straights, and claimed Ducati's first MotoGP World Championship at Motegi on 23 September 2007, with three rounds remaining. Ducati simultaneously secured the Constructors' and Teams' titles to complete their inaugural MotoGP triple crown. Stoner continued with the team through 2010 before departing for Honda.
Valentino Rossi signed a two-year deal to join Ducati in 2011, partnered by Nicky Hayden. The expected transformation did not materialise: Rossi endured his first winless premier-class season in 2011, finishing seventh in the standings, and struggled again in 2012 before returning to Yamaha. The period highlighted the difficulty of adapting the Desmosedici's specific handling characteristics to riders accustomed to different machinery.
After the Rossi interlude, Ducati began a sustained rebuild under the technical leadership of Gigi Dall'Igna, who became racing director in 2014. Andrea Dovizioso became the factory team's senior rider and challenged Honda's Marc Márquez for the championship in 2017, 2018, and 2019. In 2017 Dovizioso scored six race wins and remained in title contention until crashing at the final race in Valencia. In 2018 he again finished the season as Márquez's closest challenger despite four-time world champion Jorge Lorenzo winning three races as his teammate. Ducati's determination across this era established them as Honda's most credible rival even before they reached championship glory. In 2020, amid a shortened Covid-affected season, Ducati won the Constructors' Championship for a second time.
Francesco Bagnaia became Ducati's defining rider of the 2020s. After finishing runner-up in 2021, he won the Riders' World Championship in 2022, ending Ducati's fifteen-year wait for a second MotoGP title. He repeated in 2023, becoming the first Ducati rider to win consecutive premier-class championships. Ducati's supply of machinery to multiple satellite teams — including Pramac, Gresini, and VR46 — meant the marque dominated grid representation as well as results, winning the Constructors' title each year from 2020.
In 2024, Bagnaia took eleven race wins but lost the championship to Pramac's Jorge Martín at the final round, despite Ducati securing the Constructors' title. Marc Márquez joined the factory team for 2025 and, with Bagnaia struggling to adapt to the GP25, romped to a ninth world title for himself in Japan, his first with Ducati. The 2025 season produced another triple crown for the Italian manufacturer.
Ducati's Superbike World Championship record is extensive. The manufacturer won its first Superbike riders' title in 1990 with Raymond Roche and accumulated four titles with Carl Fogarty between 1994 and 1999. Troy Bayliss won three times (2001, 2006, 2008), and Neil Hodgson secured the 2003 title. Ducati has also recorded significant success in British Superbike competition, winning the manufacturers' championship thirteen times.
Ducati Corse's combination of Italian engineering identity, distinctive V-twin and later V4 Desmosedici architecture, and a satellite-team supply strategy has made it the most prolific constructor in MotoGP's post-2020 landscape. The organisation also competes in MotoE, MXGP, and FIM Endurance World Championship events, reflecting an ambition that extends well beyond the premier class.