When the most astonishing MotoGP transfer move of recent years was announced last year, many struggled to take it seriously. Marc Marquez in Gresini? It was unthinkable for some. Yet, since it was made official, no one has ever doubted the fact that, astride the Ducati, the most competitive bike on the grid, he could return to fighting for victories, if not for the title.
However, having reached the first half of the season, the balance of the summer break sees the eight-time world champion fasting for successes. Surprising for many, but not for Marc Marquez, who has kept his feet on the ground from the beginning, considering the adventure in Gresini a way to regain confidence in his abilities and return to having fun on the bike. The victories and satisfactions would come later.
He has come close to victory on more than one occasion, but it has always slipped out of his hands for various reasons. At the start of the summer break, however, the Gresini rider is third in the championship, 56 points behind leader Pecco Bagnaia. Looking at the general standings, it is natural to think that the eight-time world champion could aim for ninth, but once again it is the rider himself who lowers expectations, explaining this in an interview with DAZN Spain.
Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“People tell me, I’m close. But you’ve seen the reality,” Marc explains. “And the reality is that how can I fight for the championship if I save Sundays as best I can, if I don’t finish the races, if one thing, if the other…? There are two riders who are consistently faster and ahead of us. Fight for the world championship? A lot of things have to happen, I don’t see myself fighting. The goal is to finish in the top 3, but it won’t be easy to keep Bastianini behind,” Marc acknowledges, who has an advantage of just 11 points over the Ducati rider from Rimini.
Marquez, however, does not hide the fact that he toyed with the idea of actually being able to do it: “There were moments… When you do races like Jerez or Le Mans you say to yourself ‘let’s see what happens in the next ones’. But the next one, at Montmelo, I saw myself far away again. At Mugello I was closer than I expected, but also in Holland I was far away. To win the championship, and I said this at the start of the season, you have to be consistent on every track. And if you are also fast, that makes the difference”.
Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Consistent and fast are adjectives that suit the two big favorites for the title, Jorge Martin and Pecco Bagnaia. The latter, in the last four weekends has won 6 of the 8 races, while the Spaniard gave up the lead right at the Sachsenring after ending up in the gravel when he was dominating the race. “I see Pecco better at the moment,” says Marquez, who is watching the fight between the two from the outside. “He has mental stability, which is very important, and he gets results. Then he can change everything in two races.”
The reigning champion and current world championship leader will be Marc’s teammate in 2025: “How did he take this news? I think so. If I were him, I would take it as a challenge. You are teamed with the rider who has won the most titles on the current MotoGP grid, you will have the same bike as him and you will show people that you can beat him. If I were Pecco, I would take it like this, but you have to ask him how he took it.”
Ducati, despite initial hesitations, ultimately chose Marc as the rider to pair with Bagnaia, preferring him to Jorge Martin. In addition to the “red” bike, was there a valid alternative or was it a “bluff” to put salt on Ducati’s tail? “No, it was an approach that was option C, the third, not even the second, but yes, why not? There are two other European brands that are working well and have made progress in recent years. So yes, they were real and effective options”.
Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing, Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Then the choice fell on Ducati. In Borgo Panigale were they afraid of letting go of the most successful of recent years and handing him over to the competition? “If I were Ducati, I wouldn’t be afraid of another brand, even with another rider. Now they have the fastest, Pecco. But there are two or three others who are fast. I wouldn’t be afraid of another rider leaving, because if it weren’t me it would be Martin, who is going very fast”.
“The answer I was given was always direct and clear: ‘Seeing your progress in these first six races with the 2023 bike, we are very happy and we think you can do very well with the factory bike’. I accepted, we talked about the conditions, I was satisfied, happy, and when I feel satisfied and competitive, there is no need to look elsewhere,” Marquez continues.
Once he regained confidence with the ride, once he found the fun again, Marc is continuing to get to know this Ducati, with which he will take a step forward in 2025. Next year the idea of grabbing that ninth title buzzes in his head and Marquez does not hide it: “How many more world championships do I think I can win? Let’s go for the next one. One. At least one”.
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