Alberto Forato has endured more than his fair share of setbacks over the past two seasons, but the Italian remains determined to make the most of his first opportunity as a full factory rider with Fantic after signing with them for the 2026 season After injuries disrupted much of his last two seasons, 2026 has become a rebuilding campaign as he works his way back to the level he knows he can reach.
While there have been encouraging signs throughout the MXGP season, Forato has recently been battling another major obstacle after being diagnosed with a bacterial lung infection. Despite the challenges, the Italian remains focused on the bigger picture and is determined to return stronger once he has fully recovered.
Reflecting on his move to Fantic and finally becoming a full factory rider, Forato is enjoying the opportunity despite a difficult winter of preparation.
“I’m a full factory rider for the first time in my career and that’s really nice. With Fantic it’s been pretty good, we had a slow start of the preparation but now we are working and improving a lot together”, Forato told GateDrop.com.
The 26-year-old admits that missing so much racing over the past two years has made his comeback far tougher than he initially anticipated.
“The last two years has been really difficult and I missed most of both seasons. I could only start riding and testing quite late to prepare for this season, but since then we are working flat out to get back and to be better. It’s definitely not easy after missing so much racing, I also thought it would not take much but it’s not easy at all, I would say I wasn’t surprised but I’m still not at the level I want and I’m capable of”.
Forato sees 2026 as a year of rebuilding and refuses to lose faith in the process – he also had a bright start to the season.
“So far my season has been quite okay, some ups and downs, this is my restart season as I said at the beginning of the year. I keep pushing and trusting the process even though when I’m on the gate I just want to perform”.
Looking back at the recent MXGP round in South Africa, Forato was complimentary of the venue and the circuit, even if it differed from the traditional European tracks.
“South Africa was pretty nice, the track was really nice. For racing maybe, it was a bit too flat but the layout was fun. The place was different of course than what we’re used to in Europe but actually when I’m there it’s for racing so I don’t do much sightseeing.”
However, shortly after the event, Forato revealed that he has been competing while suffering from an illness that has severely affected both his training and race performances.
“Right now, I’m dealing with a Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection. It’s a bacterial infection that affects the lungs and respiratory system. It has taken a lot out of me. My immune system is pretty much non-existent at the moment, I’ve been dealing with constant fatigue, really low energy and it’s been very difficult to train and recover the way I should. It’s already almost a month or so that I’ve felt like this, we were searching for what it could be and when I went to the doctor and after all the exams this came out”.
The illness has left him feeling frustrated, with his mind willing him to push but his body unable to respond.
“It’s one of the worst feelings because the head wants to go and knows what to do but the body doesn’t react as I want. Every training session and every race is much harder than it should be because my body isn’t able to perform at 100% and even recover from it”.
The diagnosis only came after an intense run of consecutive race weekends, making it difficult to properly rest until the upcoming break in the calendar.
“The thing is that we found out that not long ago, we were back-to-back racing so it wasn’t easy at all. Now we have one weekend off so once I arrived home from South Africa they put me straight on the couch and got me started with the antibiotics. It’s big time frustrating because I know what I want to do, what I’m capable of and have to deal with this makes me go crazy but that’s life sometimes”.
For now, Forato’s priority is simply to recover fully but once healthy, his ambitions remain exactly the same.
“As I said I will use this week off to rest as much as possible, do everything right to try to heal as much as possible and after the races restart so we will see how I feel… for sure now I have to be patient and try to heal quick but good, in those cases there is not a real timing to follow. My goal for sure at the moment is to get out from this because it’s a nightmare and after that nothing changed the goals. It’s to go strong at the races, start to be my best version and do good with consistent results, that is what I’m here for”.
While his immediate focus is on returning to full fitness, Forato also touched on his future. Currently contracted to Fantic for just one season, he is in no rush to make decisions and is instead concentrating on getting back to his best.
“At the moment I’m on a one-year deal with Fantic, and for now I still didn’t plan what’s going to be my future. I like the bike and to work with them, we will see what the next step will bring to me and my career”.
After everything he has endured over the past two seasons, another setback is the last thing Forato needed. Nevertheless, his determination remains clear. Once he has overcome the infection and regained full strength, the Italian is confident he can begin showing the speed and consistency that earned him a coveted factory ride in the first place.
