The ‘devastating impact’ Lewis Hamilton’s first Ferrari factory visit had on Ducati’s 2025 bike launch

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Ducati have unveiled their challenger for the 2025 MotoGP season as they look to continue their dominance in the premier class.

The factory team won the Constructors’ Championship by 203 points in 2024. Ducati bikes won all but one of the 20 races last season.

Francesco Bagnaia won 11 of those events, but even that was not enough to win his third title. The Italian’s three retirements proved costly as he lost the championship to satellite Ducati rider Jorge Martin.

Bagnaia will be looking to bounce back in 2025 with his new machine. Ducati revealed their bike for the upcoming MotoGP season on Monday.

However, there was one other major event in motorsport that dominated the headlines that day.

Lewis Hamilton’s first Ferrari factory visit ‘eliminated’ the visibility of Ducati’s bike launch

On the same day as the launch of the new Ducati, seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton made his first visit to the Ferrari factory in Maranello.

The Brit greeted his new team members before doing some simulator work. Hamilton sent social media into a frenzy as he posed outside Enzo Ferrari’s old house with a Ferrari F40 behind him.

This came before the 40-year-old is set to take to the track in a Ferrari F1 car for the first time on Wednesday. Understandably, fan interest is sky-high with hundreds of people flocking to the factory to meet their new driver.

In a report by the Italian edition of Motorsport.com, Hamilton’s visit to the factory in Maranello had a ‘devastating impact’ on the viewership of the Ducati launch.

Due to Ferrari’s ‘huge success’ on social media with the images of Hamilton, the Brit had ‘almost eliminated the social visibility’ of Ducati’s event. While the Bologna-based outfit had the most anticipated bike to launch, it is not surprising Hamilton dominated the news with his Ferrari debut this week.

Ducati now have ‘huge responsibility’ with Marc Marquez joining the team

With defending champion Martin heading to Aprilia after being snubbed of the second factory Ducati seat, Bagnaia will come into 2025 as one of the favourites for the championship.

Valentino Rossi is tipping Bagnaia for the title, but the 28-year-old will face serious competition for his new teammate – six-time champion Marc Marquez.

The Spaniard showed in 2024 that he is still capable of fighting at the front. The 31-year-old finished third in the standings last season and is in a strong position to grab a seventh title with Ducati.

With Marquez’s arrival, Ducati now have a ‘huge responsibility’ to provide their riders with a competitive bike. The two multiple world champions are sure to give fans one of the closest battles on track in 2025.

Many people in the paddock think Marquez will beat Bagnaia at Ducati, but they do not want to ‘go public’ with that opinion. Whether that verdict comes to fruition is another question.