Marc Márquez appears on stage as a child with new shoes. A red shoe, in this case, that should lead him at more than 300 km/h towards, at least, the fight for his long-awaited ninth World title. After many years of setbacks, first physical and then mechanical, with motorcycles that were not in line with his track record, the smile betrays the Cervera rider in his presentation with Ducati. In Madonna di Campiglio, in the heart of the Dolomites, a common cycling land, this time the engine makes its way to inaugurate a year that aims to be historic for the team.
“Everything is red. It’s exciting. I have butterflies in my stomach about starting a new project. I have fought a lot against Ducati and last year they smiled back at me. It is a privilege”, the Catalan presented himself in a packed and expectant auditorium.
“We must work as a team to win the World Championship for drivers and constructors, whether Pecco or I win and then we will see how we are in the standings.”
The eight-time world champion is the star, the cherry on top of almost a hundred years of the factory, and the one chosen to return Desmosedici to the top with the permission of his teammate Pecco Bagnaia, two-time champion with the Italian team and his greatest rival for the world scepter. The aura of both drivers is only partially overshadowed by the red flash of the new Desmosedici GP25 in the middle of the stage.
“We are starting from a very good base. It is difficult to improve, but we can work harder and better to win the drivers’ title,” explains Gigi Dall’Igna about a bike that does not present any major new features compared to the one that won the Constructors’ World Championship in 2024. Ducati’s new creation appears before the public for the first time. Those present use up their cell phone batteries with their latest generation cameras while Márquez and Bagnaia, already decked out in their respective jumpsuits, begin to mold their figure to the seat of their most precious jewel. They look at her with desire and touch her with affection before subjecting her to the hardness of the asphalt.
“We have two champions, the two best drivers on the grid. Pecco is fantastic, he returned the title to Ducati and has been the protagonist for the last four years,” praises his pupil Dall’Igna, general director of the team and shadow maker of the factory’s success, who also spares no praise for the newcomer. : “Marc is one of the best riders in modern MotoGP history. He went through bad times and last year he recovered his level. It is an honor to have him on the team. It will be a beautiful story.”
“I have a new teammate, a strong and competitive rider and, together, we can take the development of the bike to an even higher level.”
Bagnaia accepts the duel without an iota of tension. Together with the man from Ilerda, the Turin driver shares the stage relaxed, confident in his possibilities. Beyond the two MotoGP titles (2022 and 2023), the 11 victories of last year, despite being bitter due to the runner-up position against Jorge Martín, support him until the checkered flag of Burinam on March 2, in the opening Grand Prix of the season, dictate the first sentence.
“I will do my job as always. It hasn’t changed that Márquez is there. My ambition is to beat all the drivers. I have a new teammate, a strong and competitive rider and, together, we can take the development of the bike to an even higher level,” explains Bagnaia. The Italian, however, already saw how his hierarchy was called into question in Márquez’s first contact with the red bullet in the Barcelona tests, where the Spaniard was just a few hundredths behind the Italian’s time with a GP25 still to develop. The next preseason test in Malaysia, now with the bikes more tuned to the taste of the two riders, will offer a more approximate scale of how both will reach the pace for the first event on the calendar.
The Ducati of Bagnaia and Márquez.
“Bagnaia has more experience in the garage and has contributed a lot to Ducati. It is logical that he has the first word, but in the end at Ducati they value all efforts equally and they have told me that the intention is for one or the other to win,” says Márquez about a duel with his teammate who is initially marked by cordiality.
The Spaniard already offered last season an appetizer of what he is capable of with a Ducati. Riding the 2023 Desmosedici, which he rode with the Gresini team, he won three victories (Aragon, San Marino and Austria) and finished third in the World Cup. But even more important were the sensations, once again competitive after two frustrating years on his beloved Honda. “Comparisons are odious and you cannot compare a 10-year relationship with one of half a year,” explains Márquez about his long period in the Japanese team, who has brought Javier Ortiz, his “trusted person,” for this new stage. ”.
The Catalan understands his arrival at Ducati as a rebirth after some dark years that ended with his arrival at Gresini the previous year, “the perfect step” to reach the “reference bike” on the grid this season. “In 2013 I was not aware of where I was and now, at 32 years old, you are already realistic about what MotoGP is, about being in a factory team. You notice it a lot more, but obviously in 2013 everything was going crazy everywhere,” Cervera explains about his beginnings in the premier category.
In the midst of a journey to hell, weakened by physical problems, Márquez had to debate between two vital options before continuing to fight to recover his best version: “I decided between finishing my career or continuing. Before retiring I had to see if the problem was me or see what I could do with the best bike.” The fracture of the humerus (2020), the diplopia (2022) and the break of the first metacarpal of the right hand (2023) are also past. Without injuries, the usual Márquez is back and with the best bike on the grid the equation seems easy to solve.
We have two champions, the two best drivers on the grid. “It will be a beautiful story.”
“The main objective is to be among the top three because that means fighting for the title. It is a very strong motorcycle. We must work as a team to win the World Championship for drivers and manufacturers, whether Pecco or I win and then we will see how we are in the standings,” concludes a conciliatory Márquez, once again in the perfect place to battle with all the guarantees for his ninth win. .
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