Marco Bezzecchi
Ducati proved they are still the ones to beat in MotoGP after pre-season testing in Malaysia. But the factory team will be left with a slight headache.
The GP24 bike won 19 out of 20 races in 2024 – the most dominant in MotoGP history – and guided Jorge Martin to his maiden title.
Last year’s spec will be piloted by satellite riders Alex Marquez, Fermin Aldeguer and Franco Morbidelli – who raced on the GP24 in 2024 – in 2025. Meanwhile, Francesco Bagnaia, Marc Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio will have the GP25.
It would be unrealistic for Ducati to improve on the dominance of the GP24 with the GP25 at Sepang. But after three days of testing, it seems last year’s bike is still the one to have.
Morbidelli topped the time sheets on day two, while on Friday, it was Alex Marquez who beat Bagnaia by just seven thousandths of a second.
The 28-year-old also came out on top in the Sprint race simulations. Brother Marc Marquez felt his pace was ‘super good’ in his Sprint run – making Alex’s performance even more impressive.
Alex Marquez’s Sprint simulation in Sepang was six-tenths quicker than Jorge Martin’s average pace in 2024’s Sprint
The Gresini rider’s run was so strong that, as journalist Lewis Duncan pointed out, his average across 10 laps was six tenths faster than Martin’s average pace in the 2024 Sprint race in Malaysia.
Speaking on the Crash MotoGP Podcast, Duncan said: “Obviously we’ve seen quite a lot of movements elsewhere in that pecking order.
“But fundamentally Ducati comes away from it with the best overall time in terms of lap time, the best race average in terms of, we only saw Sprint simulations really. Ducati were one and two in that.
“And by quite a margin as well. If you look at Alex Marquez’s Sprint simulation over 10 laps his average worked out at 1:57:901.
“That’s about six tenths quicker just about than Jorge Martin’s average from the Sprint race, we say last year, it wasn’t last year, it was four months ago.
“So in four months Ducati have been able to find six tenths. Obviously track conditions have played a part but that’s where they’re still at”.
READ MORE: How Fermin Aldeguer’s first Gresini lap times compared to Marc Marquez in MotoGP Shakedown
Of course, there are many factors to consider when looking at the data. As Duncan mentions, track conditions will have been different – especially given the amount of grip on track during pre-season testing from the Shakedown session the week before.
Furthermore, Martin’s average will have been affected by his battle with Bagnaia for the Sprint race win. Alex Marquez would have had a clean run given it was testing.
Alex Marquez promises not to make 2024 ‘mistake’ in 2025
The outing in Sepang will have given the Gresini rider confidence heading into 2025. Marquez was ‘super close’ to Bagnaia’s 2024 pole lap with his time on day three.
With the GP24 still seemingly the bike to beat, Marquez will be looking to use that to his advantage and start the season strong.
Morbidelli says victories are ‘definitely’ possible in 2025 and Marquez will certainly be looking to do just that. The Spaniard has never won a race in the premier class.
It is not clear what Ducati are going to do with the GP25 spec and if they could potentially move back to last year’s bike for the factory riders. But Marquez is not concerned by that.
Marquez wants to avoid focusing on others and concentrate on himself – a ‘mistake’ he made in 2024. The 28-year-old knows he will have the GP24 in 2025 and will be focused on extracting the best results on it.
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