Enea Bastianini warns of complications for Ducati after placing Marc Marquez next to Francesco Bagnaia 

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Enea Bastianini’s departure from Ducati has allowed for one of the most anticipated intra-team battles in recent MotoGP history.

Marc Marquez has moved to the factory Ducati team from satellite squad Gresini. He will be teamed up with Francesco Bagnaia and both riders will be looking to add another championship to their records.

Bagnaia missed out on a third consecutive title to Jorge Martin in 2024. Despite winning 11 of the 20 races, the Italian made costly mistakes with three retirements and several poor starts.

Bagnaia even thought about his mistakes on his honeymoon as he struggled to cope with losing the title to Martin. The 28-year-old will have to be on his game when he goes up against Marquez in 2025.

The six-time MotoGP champion returned to form last season after a difficult end to his spell at Honda. Marquez finished third in the standings with three wins on the year-old Desmosedici GP23.

The Spaniard finished six points ahead of Bastianini and has taken the Italian’s seat at Ducati. As he joins KTM’s satellite team Tech3, the 27-year-old issued a warning to his former team.

Enea Bastianini says Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez’s battles may cause complications at Ducati

Bagnaia called Marquez’s arrival to Ducati ‘very beautiful’ as the pair can learn from each other. But they will almost certainly produce some tense battles on track as they gun for the title.

The duo’s relationship is already quite frosty after Bagnaia and Marquez had a heated exchange in Portugal after they collided in the race. The former retired from the race while the latter finished 16th.

Bagnaia and Marquez’s rivalry has been simmering ‘in secret’ ever since that race in Portimao. It sets up an exciting championship battle, but a huge headache for Ducati.

READ MORE: Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia’s life outside of MotoGP from net worth to race number

Uccio Salucci says Ducati must be ‘brave’ with Bagnaia and Marquez’s battle in 2025. If they are not, it could lead to complications – as Bastianini puts it.

Talking about the Ducati battle this season with Giovanni Zamagni on his YouTube channel, the Tech3 rider said: “I don’t see it as catastrophic from the outside in the sense that in my opinion, they will be able to get along.

“Obviously I’m sure that there will be no shortage of battles on the track and this could complicate things a bit”.

Who will win the Ducati battle? – Francesco Bagnaia or Marc Marquez

With his impressive performances on the GP23 last season, many are excited to see Marquez in action on the current spec – the GP25.

Ducati fans welcomed Marquez in person at the team’s bike launch last month. This will be a major confidence boost for the Spaniard given the previous friction between the two parties.

The 31-year-old will be keen to get the edge over his teammate in 2025, while Ducati will be hoping to avoid any drama between the two riders.

Many people in the paddock think Marquez will take Bagnaia apart in 2025 but do not want to ‘go public’ with that opinion. If the Italian cannot get over his errors from 2024, his teammate may grab a seventh title at his expense.