The outcry was heard around the world last Sunday at 2.39pm local time in Portugal, when social media went wild over the clash between Marc Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia. It's an incident that Ducati received plenty of warning about last year, when eight-time world champion Marc Marquez's idea of signing for Gresini to race a year-old Desmosedici GP made headlines.
Just hours before Marquez made his first appearance on the GP23 at post-season testing in Valencia last November, Ducati Corse general director Gigi Dall'Igna told the media that “Ducati's position has been certainly that of not wanting Marquez.”
His comment is rooted in the fact that Ducati in the last four years – since the egos of Andrea Dovizioso and Dall'Igna irremediably clashed and the former was not re-signed beyond 2020 – has created a very balanced ecosystem.
Riding it is Bagnaia, now a double world champion for the brand, while second place in the official team is occupied by Enea Bastianini, who impressed in 2022 riding a Gresini Racing Ducati. This earned him the place over Jorge Martin, winner of the Portuguese GP and 2023 world vice-champion, who in turn drives a factory Desmosedici GP but with the colors of Prima Pramac Racing.
In addition to these two teams, Ducati has riders of the caliber of three-time Grand Prix winner Marco Bezzecchi under contract with VR46, as well as Fabio Di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez, who have shown winning potential as satellite riders for the brand Italian, but without being directly under contract.
Marc Marquez is also under contract with Gresini and not with Ducati. But the threat he posed to this ecosystem has long been discussed, as the Italian brand – which eventually warmed up a bit to the idea of seeing him on one of its bikes as the year went by – became ultimately proved powerless to prevent the team managed by Nadia Padovani from securing his signature.
Unsurprisingly, as soon as Marquez got on the GP23, Ducati management expressed interest and praise, as well as considering the rider as a potential candidate for the factory team for 2025.
Marquez aboard the Ducati has so far lived up to pre-season expectations, upsetting an environment that had been quite stable.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“Marc has already demonstrated all his talent and class thanks to an innate ability to adapt: he is already a formidable competitor on a bike that is completely new to him, the first of our 2023 bikes to take the checkered flag,” said Dall 'Igna in his post-Qatar GP review on the Ducati website. “The experience and desire of a champion who once again wants to have his say will make the difference in this new adventure.”
Marquez's progress on the GP23 from Qatar to Portugal was evident last weekend. Despite having made three mistakes on the Algarve circuit which, according to him, were avoidable with a greater number of kilometers on the bike (the most critical of which was the fall in qualifying which left him eighth, as he activated the the lowerer), Marquez said he was convinced: 'now we have the speed'”.
Starting from eighth position, Marquez finished second in the Sprint and achieved his first podium in Ducati. The Grand Prix was a little more complicated and his pace wasn't good enough to be a factor in the battle for the podium. But the patient approach that has characterized his time aboard the Ducati so far saw him remain in sixth position for much of the race, before seeing an opportunity to snatch fifth place from Bagnaia, which could have become fourth following the retirement of Maverick Vinales due to a broken gearbox.
During the 23rd lap, Marquez took a run on Bagnaia when the Ducati rider struggled at turn 4 – a problem that continued throughout the race and which took away his chance to fight for a second victory of the GP of Portugal – and attempted an incursion into the left-hand descent leading to Turn 5. Bagnaia attempted to cross and regain his position on the inside, but the two touched. Both crashed and did not score.
The stewards investigated the incident, but did not deem it necessary to take further action. If on the one hand it could be argued that Marquez could have left a little more space, aware that Bagnaia would have tried to react, on the other hand it could just as easily be argued that the latter could have realized that Marquez would not have been able to see where he would be given the angle of the curve.
Bagnaia said he was “angry” at being left without points, thus allowing Martin to gain a 23-point championship lead over him. But, at least publicly, he accepted the stewards' verdict on the race accident.
Marquez's assessment was a little more direct: “It's impossible for two riders to agree an hour after the accident. But when we arrived at race direction, I told the stewards that it was a race accident , even if a little on the limit.”
Bagnaia saw Martin move into the lead after his clash with Marquez, a setback in his hopes of winning a third consecutive title.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“The commissioners have to decide what the limit is. For me it was a mistake by Pecco, but not only because of the accident. Because in the end he tried to rejoin. Ok, he was too optimistic and a contact could happen. But it was a mistake because we were fighting for fifth, sixth position, two points more, two points less. And he suffered a lot, especially with the rear tyres.”
“In the end, when there are three or four laps to go you know that you will lose the position, there is no need to go back in that aggressive way. But he decided like this and the consequence for Ducati is zero points.”
The last line is cold, because this comment can very easily be read as if Marquez had said that Bagnaia was not acting in the interests of the manufacturer. But this is a fundamental characteristic of the Spaniard: he always thinks about what he says to the media. Nothing is ever said in anger or in the heat of the moment.
This was evident when he added: “I didn't speak to the Ducati staff, but only to Davide (Tardozzi, Ducati Corse team manager). The good thing is that they have telemetry and can see exactly what happened…” .
Marquez told Spanish media that he is “not here to think about revenge”, when asked if there would be an answer on track in Austin next month. There's no need, though, because he's already fired his shots.
His media debriefing came after that of Bagnaia, whose diplomacy over the incident will now have to stand as his side of the story for another three weeks, until he can adequately address Marquez's comments.
The fact is that Marquez had every chance of dealing with the situation in the same way that Bagnaia dealt with it. He will probably argue that it was just honesty. But one might also think that Marquez has taken the first steps to trouble riders who he will soon begin to see as a threat to the title, if the current trajectory of his adaptation to Ducati continues. His comments on telemetry will also force Ducati to reveal these details, which could probably further absolve him.
Marquez's choice not to use the same diplomatic assessment as Bagnaia after the accident is indicative of his mentality.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
So far, Marquez and Bagnaia have never crossed paths. The latter's rise coincided with the postponement of Marquez's career, caused by an injury, while last year Honda was absolutely unable to challenge Ducati.
Portugal could mark the first round of this battle, but also a preview of the future, when Marquez will start to test the other Ducati leader, Martin, with whom he has already had several clashes on the track in recent years.
A conflict between Bagnaia and Martin can be handled quite easily internally. Both have a contract with the brand, so they practically answer to the same authority. Marquez has a one-year-old bike, with a contract with Gresini. For Ducati, therefore, it will be much more difficult to control him.
Ducati management has done many things correctly in recent years and the results are the right reward for this. But containing the potential fire generated by the Marquez/Bagnaia clash is the biggest challenge he has faced in a long time and could define his season.
The accident between Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing and Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
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