Marquez-Ducati one step away
The bombshell news of the 2023 MotoGP market arrives in the early Italian morning, when the qualifying of the first, historic, Indian GP is just around the corner and inevitably takes away all the attention from the track to bring it towards what could be the lines up of the 2024 season. Making the announcement which confirms two weeks of rumours, indiscretions and half-hearted gossip is one of the key names in MotoGP: that Paolo Ciabatti who is the sporting director and soul of Ducati. On the microphones of the official MotoGP channel, it was he who finally gave a certain basis to what everyone is now talking about: the Marc Marquez’s transfer to Ducati, within the Gresini team.
Ciabatti’s confirmation
What was once a journalistic assumption now becomes one concrete negotiationapparently very close to closing. “Gresini has the opportunity [di prendere Marquez] And he is waiting for Marc’s decision. He will talk to Honda management in Japan and decide“. A few words which, however, are enough to upset the market. Also because the Motegi weekend is already scheduled for next weekend. This means that perhaps already on Sunday evening we could know what the sporting destiny of one of the most successful riders in the history of the MotoGP will be.
Fascinating challenge
Ciabatti’s words inevitably reveal one thing certain coldness regarding the operation. It is no mystery that this is a negotiation not particularly appreciated by Ducati, which however cannot essentially oppose the choice of riders from a satellite team like Gresini. For Marc, however, there will be the possibility – if he actually decides to say goodbye to Honda, as everything now suggests – to get on the best bike on the grid. The Iberian will have to settle for the GP23, while the officials and standard bearers of the Pramac team will have the GP24, but he will have the advantage of finding his brother Alex in the garage, forming the couple that was supposed to be the official HRC team in 2020, before his injury .
Now inevitably the wait is all directed towards the Honda headquarters in Tokyo. It will be up to them to understand if there is still room to retain #93. Otherwise it will be necessary to prepare for a transition that risks slowing down even further the slow attempt at rebirth of the powerful Japanese giant.
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