The 2024 MotoGP season is seven race weekends old. Seven race weekends in which Marc Marquez has returned to the top of the premier class. With only 35 points behind world championship leader Jorge Martin, Marquez is third in the overall standings. He has proven that he can still be reckoned with after his serious injury and difficult years at Honda. This is how Marquez has once again become a hot commodity on the transfer market.
Marquez’s contract with Gresini Racing only runs until the end of 2024. He is therefore available again for next year and has also aroused the interest of Ducati’s factory team. But other doors are also open to the MotoGP superstar, in the Ducati camp as well as with other manufacturers. Motorsport-Magazin.com analyzed how likely the individual variants are.
Option 1: Marc Marquez moves to the Ducati factory team
A move by Marc Marquez to Ducati’s factory team is impossible. At least if you believe reports from the ‘Gazzetta dello Sport’. The Italian sports newspaper, which is traditionally very well informed and has excellent connections in Ducati circles, reported on Thursday that the decision of the management team around CEO Claudio Domenicali, General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna, Sports Director Mauro Grassilli and Team Manager Davide Tardozzi had already been made. In favor of Jorge Martin.
Ducati did not want to confirm this report. Jorge Martin also only commented vaguely, only wanting to confirm talks. Marc Marquez said that Ducati had told him that the report was not correct. And indeed, it was heard in the MotoGP paddock at Mugello that Ducati had made concrete offers to both Martin and Marquez this weekend. However, both had initially rejected them for different reasons.
A Ducati factory place could still become a reality for Marquez, but the more likely option is still a commitment from Martin. The current world championship leader leaves no room for doubt about his future plans: either a factory contract or leaving the Ducati camp. And Borgo Panigale would certainly hate to lose a man of Jorge Martin’s caliber. Especially because Marc Marquez is easier to please. Namely with option 2.
Option 2: Marc Marquez stays with Gresini – with upgrade
While Jorge Martin is demanding a place in a factory team, Marc Marquez is a little more modest for 2025: he just wants a motorcycle with the latest specification, after he is riding a last year’s machine for Gresini in the current season. In order to fulfill both Martin’s and Marquez’s wishes, Ducati is said to have planned to have Martin in the factory team and Marquez at Pramac Racing. According to team manager Gino Borsoi, Paolo Campinoti’s customer team will also have the latest Desmosedici bikes in 2025. But Marquez destroyed Ducati’s plan. “Pramac is not an option for me,” he said in Mugello, explaining his rejection by saying that he did not want to switch from one customer team to another. After eleven years at Repsol Honda, he had to get used to a new environment at Gresini Racing this season.
Marquez’s preferred option would probably be to stay with Gresini and ride a GP25 there. The catch: Ducati is currently only planning four new motorcycles for next season – two in the factory team, two at Pramac. Only once, in 2022, did they build an additional machine in the latest specification. Luca Marini rode it at VR46, with moderate success for the manufacturer, team and rider. At the same time, Ducati reached logistical and human limits with the effort involved in its MotoGP project. That is why the 4:4 strategy – four old and four new motorcycles – has been the gold standard at Ducati ever since.
“We are currently assuming four motorcycles, but the picture is complicated,” explained Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali to ‘TNT Sports’ in Mugello. “We obviously want the best for our brand, but we are also in close contact with our riders to find the best possible solution for them. We still need some time to put all the pieces of the puzzle together properly.” A GP25 for Marc Marquez at Gresini therefore seems at least within the realm of possibility. Also because resources may become available at Ducati. Yamaha is still looking for a customer team. Negotiations with Pramac have apparently failed, but VR46 still seems to be an option. A partnership with the team of Yamaha ambassador Valentino Rossi would make sense. And two fewer last year’s Ducatis could make one more current machine possible.
The fact is: Marc Marquez feels right at home at Gresini Racing and enjoys sharing the pit with his brother Alex. At the same time, working in a customer team allows him a certain amount of freedom compared to his involvement in the factory team, for example when it comes to media commitments or entertaining VIP guests. In addition, a switch to the Factory Ducati would mean Marquez breaking with long-term partners such as Red Bull or Samsung, as they are in direct competition with the team sponsors Monster Energy and Lenovo. A factor that should not be underestimated.
Option 3: Marc Marquez switches to the competition
If Marc Marquez is not promoted to the factory team and does not get a GP25 from Gresini, Ducati could lose the exceptional talent to the competition. There are two sensible alternatives for Marquez: Aprilia and the Pierer Mobility Group, represented by the brands KTM and GasGas. At Aprilia, there is at least one place free in the factory team, as Aleix Espargaro is hanging up his helmet at the end of 2024. But a contract extension for Maverick Vinales is also not certain. “They had the chance to extend my contract after the Qatar GP, but they wanted to wait. Now I have to think carefully about what I want to do,” Vinales explained to ‘DAZN’ in Mugello.
At the Pierer Mobility Group, one place is definitely filled. Pedro Acosta will be promoted to the KTM factory team in 2025. When asked whether Brad Binder is also set to take on this position, you get different answers depending on who you talk to. Motorsport boss Pit Beirer recently spoke of contracts that allow the manufacturer to move its drivers between KTM and GasGas-Tech3. Binder’s manager Bob Moore sees things differently. “Brad has a contract with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing,” he clarified to ‘Crash.net’.
It is questionable whether Marquez would also agree to a place at GasGas-Tech3. Officially it is a customer team, but the Pierer Mobility Group treats Herve Poncharal’s team essentially like a second factory team, which is reflected in the effort currently being made for Acosta, for example. However, the management in Mattighofen and Munderfing is not optimistic about being able to land Marquez. In a conversation with Motorsport-Magazin.com in mid-May, Pit Beirer said it was unrealistic to get Marquez on one of his motorcycles. KTM team manager Francesco Guidotti also sent similar signals in Mugello: “I don’t think Marc is available.”
Conclusion
All of the options mentioned are certainly attractive for Marquez. However, considering their feasibility and Marquez’s chances of success with the respective package, staying with Gresini Racing, including an upgrade from Ducati to current material, seems to be the most likely option. Ducati is aware not only of the marketing value of the eight-time world champion, but also of his danger if he switches to the competition. It can therefore be assumed that all the stops will be pulled out in Borgo Panigale to provide Marquez with a GP25 in Gresini colors.