MotoGP | Alex Marquez tested some “new parts” for Ducati

The life of a rider in a MotoGP collective test changes a lot depending on whether he is an official rider or a privateer. In the first case, he will probably have to test many parts and work on development, in the second, having nothing to test, he can work on the set-up and driving style alone.

This was, on paper, the task that the brothers Alex and Marc Márquez should have carried out on Monday in the official MotoGP test in Jerez, but Ducati seized the opportunity to exploit the experience of the two riders and ask them to test some components. Alex Márquez explained this at the end of the day, even if at the beginning the Cervera rider tried to play it safe.

“Everyone always says the tests are positive and blah, blah, blah. Nobody leaves a test angry,” he said, laughing. “It was actually a good test, we understood some things that personally helped me understand the Ducati GP23 better when riding, how to stop the bike and how to get more. I think that we have made a small step forward for races like Le Mans and Mugello, which are important for us, and we hope they work there too, because they went very well in the test”, explained driver number 73.

Unlike the previous two years, when the “old” Ducati was initially better than the new one, this season it seems that the GP24 is slightly superior from the start. Or at least, riders like Marco Bezzecchi and Alex himself found it more difficult… Until Jerez, where everyone went strong with the 2023 bike, from the Márquez brothers to Fabio Di Giannantonio, including Bezzecchi’s first podium of the season.

“Honestly it’s a question of habit,” says Alex, who is in his second year at Gresini riding a Desmosedici. “I believe that the three of us (Bezzecchi, Di Giannantonio and himself, ed) we were very used to the 2022, which was a bike that gave you a lot of confidence right from the start, gave you a lot of feedback and it was easy to find the limit. I’ve said it since day one, the bike we’re using this season seems to have greater potential than last year’s, but we need to work on it and make it more ready. Bezzecchi had an excellent race on Sunday, being very consistent, and I think that all of us who come from the 22nd are picking up the pace of this bike”, was the reflection.

It was also a good weekend for Alex, he managed to fight for the top positions and on Sunday he achieved an excellent fourth place. This leads to approaching the tests with a more positive approach: “It’s always good to do tests, but when the Grand Prix went well it’s better than if it went badly. In this case we focus more on solving problems than on progressing, whereas if things have gone well it is easier to make progress. They are two completely different approaches, so it’s always better to do a test after a good weekend to prove things for the future,” he said, implying that they had been testing parts for Ducati, which had several technicians in and out of the Gresini garage during the test.

Alex Márquez, Gresini Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“They always ask us this and we also felt something about the future for Ducati,” he admitted. “It’s like you give to them and they give to you, that’s how it is. You have to test things for them, so you have something too. We have done some tests for the future, to understand in which direction to go, but it is only about information and being a test driver for the brand, because they ask for it and what is less than giving something for them to have something in exchange?”.

On Sunday, Marc Márquez said that “maybe” some “pieces” would arrive in the garage during the test in the form of a new part, or even an improvement that could remain in the Gresini garage. “I don’t know (laughs)… We tried some things, it’s true, it was nice. These are things that can be used in the future,” admitted the younger Márquez, making it clear that Ducati has already provided him with some improvements.