MotoGP | Marc Marquez: “I can't win straight away with the Ducati”

The presentation of the Gresini team represents the beginning of a new era for Marc Marquez, one in which he takes off the Honda colors and shows himself with those now characteristic of the Gresini team. He will ride a Ducati, the Desmosedici GP23, and is putting himself out there to win again, but above all to have fun.

It seems strange at first to see Marc in a different uniform, but you quickly get used to it. He showed his speed from the first moment, he appeared at ease in the garage and on the bike. He will return to share the garage with his brother Alex and this will be of great help, the family reference has always been important. “After eleven years with the same team, the first times are strange. But when I made the decision, I was fully convinced,” explains Marc in the post-presentation conference.

“Obviously, coming to a team like Gresini with my brother as a teammate will make the change easier. But I knew it would be like this, I felt very comfortable from the first test in Valencia. Everyone was nervous, but already in recent days we have spent time together,” he continues.

What are your expectations for this new adventure?
“One thing is the expectation, the other is the approach. My approach is to try to be fast on the track. If I can be a tenth faster already in the first test, I will try. But another thing is expectation versus reality. The first is very high on the part of the people. But my job is to try to forget them all, work in my garage because I have to stay calm, especially at the beginning. Being calm doesn't mean not being fast. Obviously I'll try, but I can't expect to fight for the victory right away. The last four years have been a nightmare for me, I haven't won a race for two years. I arrive on a motorbike with which two riders in particular, Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin, have been racing for many years, winning races and championships. They are very fast and will have the 2024 bike. You can't expect to arrive and immediately be at the same level as them.”

At Honda you had created a special relationship with the team. How long will it take to build it with Gresini?
“Creating the same atmosphere I had in Honda is impossible, because I built it over ten years. But we have to create a professional atmosphere with nice people with whom I felt comfortable from day one. In the end, that's not the goal, you can't compare the two realities. Over time, with tests, with races, we will have an increasingly better relationship.”

What were your first impressions of the Valencia tests?
“In Valencia I felt good. Obviously the time came because I felt the feeling with the bike, when I started pushing, the lap arrived. But I'm curious to try the bike in Malaysia, in Qatar… Tracks where I've always struggled more. In Valencia I'm usually very fast, but it was a good way to start. I only had one bike in the garage, usually I had four in the Valencia tests. So I remained calm because they told me not to fall, to take the bike to the garage. I'm curious to see what my level will be in the tests in Malaysia.”

The riding style between Honda and Ducati is different. Is what we saw in Valencia your definitive style?
“It's a different way of approaching lap time, above all. The way of approaching the curves is completely different, I had to understand many things. Honda also has very strong points in some parts of the corner, but I couldn't use that style I had to ride the Ducati. The corner exit, in particular, was very smooth, but I still have to learn how to use that extra power and grip that the Ducati has. We went well in Valencia, but I still don't know if this will be my riding style with the Ducati, it was the first test, I had ridden with a setup from others that I didn't know and I just had to adapt.”

This year you will be at the start of the season without injuries…
“I finally had a normal winter! This is another very important thing, because since 2018 I have spent every winter doing rehabilitation on my shoulder and arm. Now that I have a normal winter, we will try to escape from injuries. The reason for the results with Honda was not just the bike, but also my physique.”

Photo by: Gresini Racing

Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing, Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing

You and Alex were teammates already at Honda. You will return to share the box again this year, but will it be different this time?
“I hope to have a different year, because 2020 was my worst year, the one that changed everything. Obviously we hope to have fun throughout the year, I will work in my side of the garage. The important thing for Alex will be not to put too many expectations on himself because I will be on the other side of the garage. He has expectations of him and they have to be realistic.”

You say you have no expectations, but Nadia Padovani said she's aiming high this year.
“When they take a rider, it's because they believe he can go fast. They took a risk, they waited for my decision until October. I also want to do well, but we have to go slowly. Honda? They changed the project leader, so here he comes. The biggest doubt is that we don't know when. It could be in a month, a year or two. This was risky for my moment in sports career. Not for Honda, but for me. I thought this was the right thing to do, I am convinced of my decision.”

You visited the Ducati factory, what did you see? Have you spoken to Dall'Igna?
“It was more of a protocol visit, we also had to do it technically, because Ducati uses its parameters and its things to reach the level of bike it has. The bike is the 2023, the same one that Pecco and Jorge Martin finished, and we start from there. And then, if necessary, we can accommodate everything that comes during the year. My job is to get the most. I've already said it and I'll say it again, I've always felt loved by Ducati , otherwise I wouldn't have taken this step, because I'm from the Gresini team but we ride a Ducati, Dall'Igna has always treated me very well.”