MotoGP | Márquez: “I never had the feeling that Ducati didn't want me”

The official presentation of the Gresini team will take place next week in Riccione, but Estrella Galicia, personal sponsor of Marc and Alex Marquez, has brought forward the timing by bringing together the hottest duo in MotoGP in Madrid this Wednesday. In a joint press conference, the two offered their impressions ahead of the historic season for them and for the championship.

“The goal is to start the year well. We want to feel the adrenaline, to go fast. We ended 2023 very well, but it's not easy to set expectations, it's too early. It's better to keep a low profile, race per race. Improve our consistency”, explained Alex, the youngest of the brothers, who is in his second season with Gresini.

Winner of two Sprints, Alex Márquez missed the opportunity to end a good season with a victory in a Grand Prix: “Why not win on Sunday if we work hard and are consistent? There have been positive and negative moments. If we continue with the same line, without obsessions, I think the victory will come. We came close in Malaysia. But having this fighting experience allows you to make sure that it comes.”

With the arrival of Marc in the team and with eight Ducati riders on the grid, the information for the brand's riders is varied and abundant: “It's an advantage and a disadvantage at the same time. You can have a lot of information, a lot of references, but there it can get confusing. My experience was watching the same two riders, who in the end were Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martín. They are different riding styles and you have to understand them,” said Alex.

The Márquez brothers had already been teammates in HRC in 2020, but Marc's injury left Alex alone for the whole year: “Sharing the garage is a second opportunity, we are in a very different situation than we were then Now I have more experience, I can make better use of his experience. I'm sure he's fast, I have to take advantage of it to increase my level. Unity is strength. In a team, if the two riders exchange information it can be positive, but without exaggerating.”

Marc doesn't want to create expectations

With only one day of testing, Marc Márquez has not yet been able to understand whether it is useful to have the data of eight riders compared: “I haven't tried many things yet. In Valencia I just wanted to understand the Ducati. Having eight bikes allows you to compare a lot things, draw conclusions or get confused. I hope they want to compare themselves with my data, usually they compare themselves with the fastest. Even in Honda the data was open to all four bikes. Having eight bikes helps.”

Thinking back to the unfortunate 2020, when the two Márquezes were in the Repsol Honda team, Marc expects a very different story: “The situation is totally different. I hope it's completely the opposite. In 2020 I only thought about the title, now not anymore. Now the main objective is to have fun again. If I have fun, the results will come.”

After more than ten years as a Honda rider, Marc changes and does so in strange circumstances, as a satellite rider: “Obviously it's strange to be a Ducati rider. It was strange to enter the garage and not see Santi's face (Hernandez, ed). Change side of the box. They are changes that are faced with the greatest possible motivation,” she explained, without revealing whether she is preparing for the season in a particular way. “I'm having a normal pre-season. And then I have some work to do, in Malaysia and Qatar”, referring to the pre-season tests at the beginning of February.

Photo by: Estrella Galicia 0.0

Marc Marquez, Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing

So far, the first test, in Valencia last November, “has been good. The first day after a long time with the bike, with the riding style, I had butterflies in my stomach. The smile that has been talked about so much was a smile of peace of mind. No matter how much experience you have in a category, you have worries. Now there is already a list, jotted down in the notes on my phone, for Malaysia especially, those to work on. For example, four things about location on the bike. I can't wait to tackle circuits that matter to me, like Sepang,” he said.

“The Ducati is a different bike, you have to try to do it differently. Valencia is a circuit where I've always done well, so I want to go to places that are difficult for me, that's where I'll see the bike's strong points,” he said. continued. “I haven't thrown in the towel, to the point of giving up emotions and taking a step. You have to look for the solution. You have to create good news. This is what pushes you to continue your career.”

“The expectations are already very high,” Marc emphasizes when asked where the limit is. “One of my tasks this year, together with Alex, is to chase all this away. The expectations are high, but it's as difficult as always, even more. I'll give everything, you know me, but I can't give expectations before the 'start of the season,' he said.

Looking at the results of the other riders, one might think that the Ducati is a bike to which one can adapt quickly enough to fight for victories: “If the bike is good, the rider adapts more easily. But the great unknown of being “fast is consistency. I believe I will be able to be fast on certain circuits, but I don't know if I will be able to be fast on every track. This is the difference between Bagnaia and Martín, and the riders who are fast but not constant”, said l eight-time world champion.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing

“I never had the feeling that Ducati didn't want me”

A recurring theme since we started talking about the possibility of Márquez riding a Ducati in 2024 has been the brand's alleged refusal to allow the Spaniard to ride one of its bikes, confirmed by Gigi Dall'Igna himself during the Valencia test .

“I've never had this feeling, because otherwise I wouldn't have taken the step. You don't go to a brand that doesn't want you,” he explains, despite statements to the contrary from members of the Italian company. I always try to avoid the headlines. I have always been very supported by Gresini, they gave me my time at all times. That's why I took this step,” he added.

There are many who now hypothesize that Marc has signed for one year because his future is already set for the following season, after the first year with Gresini: “For 2025 I have nothing to say to anyone, first I want to enjoy the bike and then evaluate what the best situation is. If you don't hit the gas on the track, you can choose many other options, but you have to hit the gas.”

There are those who go further and claim that before the end of last year he was offered an official contract: “The contacts are always there. Logically there were contacts, I was grateful for them, and I hope there will be contacts with many brands in the future. I have always felt very supported by Honda and Gresini. To exit a long relationship you cannot enter into another long relationship.”