He would have liked more, but Marc Marquez’s Italian Grand Prix wasn’t bad at all. Second place in the Sprint, fourth in the long race. On Sunday he arrived behind three Ducati Desmosedici GP24s and was far better than his other colleagues who, like him, ride the GP23. The eight-time world champion and the Gresini Racing team must be happy with how it went, even if they desperately want to secure their first victory together. They will try again in the next races.
MotoGP, Marquez’s assessment at Mugello
The Spaniard is happy with his performances at Mugello: “I’m quite satisfied – he told Motosan.es – especially because once again we were fighting with those in front. We missed the podium, which was a bit of a goal, but I didn’t have more. I was behind Bastianini and I did a thousand different things to try to overtake him and when I succeeded my rear tire was already very worn. However, we caught Martin and when Bastianini overtook me with two laps to go he looked like he had a new tyre. He was very fast and he deserved second place. I’m happy to have fought against the GP24s“.
Marquez is getting the most out of his GP23, managing to stay with the riders who own the most updated version of the Ducati: “With what I have I can battle with them, so I think the bikes aren’t too different. The level on the track is very similar, I don’t think I make a difference. My goal is to fight with the best Ducati, whatever I have. The smoke coming out? On this we are a bit at the limit with the GP23. We have less space for the rear device, it lowers a little less and we always push it to the limit. A piece of rubber came off, I think due to overheating, but it didn’t affect the performance“.
No claims from Ducati
The driver from Cervera does not make excuses related to the fact that he is riding a less advanced Desmosedici and does not demand any particular updates during the season: “When I signed for the Gresini team, Ducati made it very clear to me what I would have. I accepted it. It’s a year where I’m finding myself and that’s what I was looking for. I don’t look for justifications, because I knew what I had and it was explained to me very clearly. And the performance is still very good“.
Regarding the future, he had already declared in a press conference on Thursday that he had three possible scenarios for 2025, reiterating that Pramac was not an option for him. After the Italian GP he didn’t go too far, but still showed great serenity: “I have very clear ideas – he told Sky Sport MotoGP – and I’m very calm“. Marquez knows what he wants and the announcement will come soon. Highly accredited sources tell us that the agreement with the official Ducati is a done deal. The reason is clear: MM93 is a champion who is finding himself and on a media level he is worth much more than Jorge Martin. The official announcement will unleash the rest of the driver market.
Photo: X @marcmarquez93
