Francesco Bagnaia’s crew chief doesn’t understand he keeps being asked one question about Marc Marquez

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Ducati have formed one of, if not the greatest rider pairing in MotoGP history in 2025. Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez are set to have an intense battle for the title.

The former lost to Jorge Martin by 10 points in 2024 while the latter finished third on the year-old GP23 bike. The factory Ducati team won 16 races last year and are clear favourites for the championship with their two riders.

On equal machinery, Bagnaia and Marquez have drawn comparisons to Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. The F1 legends produced a fierce rivalry as teammates at McLaren.

The Ducati pairing have come to bows on track in MotoGP before. Bagnaia and Marquez had a heated exchange after the two collided at the Portuguese Grand Prix last year.

Bagnaia insists he is not like Prost as Marquez takes the Senna role. Given the previous drama between the pair, many fans expect a huge clash at Ducati in 2025.

Christian Gabbarini does not think it will get ‘personal’ between Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez

Both Ducati riders will be gunning for the title this season. Bagnaia is searching for redemption after losing a third consecutive title to Martin in 2024.

Marquez is looking for his seventh MotoGP title in 2025 – he will break Valentino Rossi’s record as the oldest champion in the four-stroke era. But Marquez is not thinking about the record as he sees his comeback from injury as more important.

Bagnaia’s crew chief Christian Gabarrini says the two Ducati riders must be ‘professional’ in their fight in 2025. Speaking with the Paddock Pass Podcast, he does not see it getting ‘personal’ between the pair.

“I think at their level, there are two champions, they must be professional anyway,” he said.

“But if there is something personal, I don’t think so straight away between them. It’s something that you have to keep with you and you must be professional first.

“And I think that Marc as well is old enough to understand this situation. So, to be honest I’m not worried about this kind of situation in the garage.

“Most of the people ask me about that but to be honest, in my list it’s a very low level compared [to] other things I’m thinking about.”

Who are the 2025 MotoGP riders’ favourite for the title?

The 2025 season kicks off with the Thailand Grand Prix this weekend. Defending champion Jorge Martin is ruled out of the race after suffering a setback in his recovery from his Sepang crash.

Bagnaia and Marquez will be favourites for victory – and indeed the championship. Outsiders Pedro Acosta at KTM and Marco Bezzecchi at Aprilia could provide some competition but it is doubtful they will get close to Ducati.

Bagnaia and Marquez gave very different answers for their 2025 champion. The former backed himself whereas the latter was more diplomatic as he highlighted the strength of the rest of the field.

Marquez could be playing ‘mind games’ with Bagnaia after testing in Buriram. The Spaniard blitzed the field in Thailand while his teammate encouraged issues with the GP25.