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Marc Marquez Cautions Against Ducati Complacency in MotoGP
Newly signed by Ducati, Marc Marquez has expressed concerns about the tendency to assume that Ducati will consistently lead the MotoGP scene in 2025 and beyond. Over recent years, Ducati has made significant advancements, particularly following Francesco Bagnaia’s entry into the factory team in 2021, which catapulted the brand to its current dominant status.
Bagnaia’s impressive back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023 on the high-performance Desmosedici bike coincided with a downturn for traditional competitors Honda and Yamaha. In 2024, Jorge Martin secured another title for Ducati with the Pramac satellite team, further solidifying the brand’s competitive edge.
With six-time world champion Marquez joining forces with Bagnaia, expectations suggest that Ducati’s supremacy might extend through the current regulatory cycle until 2026, if not longer. However, Marquez warns against this line of thinking, recalling how rapidly Ducati ascended in rankings while he was with Honda in the late 2010s.
“It can be a dangerous atmosphere thinking that Ducati will win the championship [every year],” Marquez remarked during the team’s 2025 bike launch.
Marquez noted that while Ducati appears strong, other manufacturers like Yamaha, KTM, and Aprilia are making significant strides. “Yamaha made a step last year and could present a new bike at the Malaysia tests, and they have Fabio Quartararo, a superb rider. KTM has made progress as well. You have to be cautious because the dynamics in MotoGP are ever-changing.”
Ducati has experienced remarkable success, having clinched 19 out of 20 Grand Prix races during the 2024 season and achieving a remarkable result in Buriram with the top eight positions in the sprint race.
Despite Marquez’s addition to the Ducati factory team, the organization faces challenges as both Jorge Martin and race winners Marco Bezzecchi and Enea Bastianini have moved to rival teams. Additionally, Pramac Racing concluded a two-decade partnership with Ducati to partner with Yamaha, reducing Ducati’s presence on the grid from eight bikes to six for the upcoming season.
Furthermore, Ducati has limited the supply of its factory-spec machinery, with only VR46’s Fabio di Giannantonio joining Bagnaia and Marquez as riders on the latest GP25 model. Given the shift in team dynamics, Bagnaia acknowledged that dominating the championship may be more difficult this year, as Aprilia and KTM are poised to be formidable competitors.
Bagnaia stated, “With fewer teams in the Ducati roster after Pramac’s exit, achieving podium lockouts and race victories as we did last year will be more challenging. KTM riders, especially Pedro Acosta, are notably competitive.”
He continued, “Aprilia has a world champion in Jorge Martin, alongside Bezzecchi who also has aspirations to improve upon last season. Thus, Aprilia will be a strong contender. It’s hard to gauge where Honda and Yamaha stand; Yamaha has already shown improvements, and I expect Honda will also step up this season. Right now, the strongest contenders appear to be Ducati, Aprilia, and KTM.”
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