Marco Bezzecchi
Ducati are attempting to reclaim one of the MotoGP championships in 2025 after losing out to one of their satellite teams last season.
Pramac, who are now in a partnership with Honda, managed to pip them to the riders’ title courtesy of a consistent season from Jorge Martin.
The Spaniard claimed eight fewer victories than Ducati’s two-time champion Francesco Bagnaia, but it was enough to steal the crown from his Italian rivals.
Ducati snubbed Martin for a factory seat in 2025 and opted to acquire the services of six-time champion Marc Marquez from Gresini instead.
Gresini staff were amazed by Marquez’s learning abilities before he left, winning three races in the season that he spent with them.
Now he has a chance to compete for the strongest team in the grid, against a man who is arguably the best rider on the grid for a chance to win a seventh title.
Ducati face a ‘huge responsibility’ to give Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia a good bike
Bagnaia called Ducati’s GP25 an improvement in a Barcelona test after the conclusion of the 2024 season, particularly their work on the engine impressed him most.
The 28-year-old has been a contender in each of the last four seasons, missing out twice in 2021 and 2024 by slender margins.
If Ducati can maintain their advantage over the winter, he will be best placed to earn a third title in four years.
READ MORE: Luigi Dall’Igna shares how Ducati sponsors felt about Pramac winning the 2024 MotoGP title
Speaking at the team’s 2025 bike launch, technical director Davide Barana spoke of the importance of the responsibility of the team to provide their riders with a good bike.
“The keyword for me will be ‘work’ for this year. We have an incredible team with two multiple champions,” he said.
“It’s an honour for us, it’s also a huge responsibility. We’ll have to work so much in order to give them the best materials.”
Is Ducati the final ingredient required for Marc Marquez to win a seventh MotoGP title?
Marquez was suffering from one aspect of Ducati’s 2025 bike in testing, where he struggled to find pace when the bike had fresher tyres and more grip.
There’s just over a month before the season kicks off with the Thailand Grand Prix and he will be hoping that those issues are cured by then.
Otherwise, he risks dropping off at the start of races and after pitstops, leaving him with a lot of work to do as his stints develop.
He finished 116 points shy of winning the championship on a satellite GP23 Ducati bike and will race with machinery that is two years newer now.
That jump should account for much of the gap to the front, but he will need to limit his mistakes if he wants to beat Bagnaia.
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