Marc Marquez reminds Michael Laverty of Casey Stoner with one ‘unearthly’ ability

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Marc Marquez made a solid start to the MotoGP season on the first day of the Thailand Grand Prix weekend. The new Ducati signing set the second-fastest time in practice, just behind his brother Alex.

Marquez Sr, who was quickest in FP1, was dominating the second session before a minor off for Marco Bezzecchi caused a late yellow flag. That gave his sibling a chance to pip him on the Gresini bike.

Significantly, there was angst on the other side of the Ducati garage as Francesco Bagnaia ended up down in 11th. Bagnaia was held up by Franco Morbidelli as he pushed to improve in the final minutes.

While Bagnaia should sail through to Q2 regardless, Marquez has secured the first mini-victory of the campaign. A smile and a wave to the camera from the garage showed he was satisfied with his first practice outings in red.

Marquez enters the Thailand GP as the favourite after his ominous performances during testing at Buriram. This could be the start of one of MotoGP’s great intra-team rivalries.

Bagnaia has already won two world championships on Desmosedici bikes, most recently in 2023. But to regain his crown, he’ll have to beat arguably the most complete rider on the grid.

Michael Laverty explains why Marc Marquez is ‘the worst’ teammate – just like Casey Stoner

Speaking during TNT Sports’ coverage of practice, Michael Laverty said Marquez was the kind of rider who could crush his teammate’s morale. He pointed to Jorge Lorenzo, who finished 19th in the championship for Honda in 2019 as Marquez won the title.

It was an error-strewn and injury-hit season for the three-time champion, who subsequently retired. Dani Pedrosa was by Marquez’s side for his first five title-winning campaigns, but he couldn’t live with the Ant of Cervera either.

Laverty drew comparisons to Casey Stoner, who could also extract a level of performance that seemed alien to his teammate. Marco Melandri was one of his victims at Ducati in 2008.

“If you asked Jorge Lorenzo, Dani Pedrosa, any of Marc’s teammates, he’s probably the worst,” Laverty said. “It’s like being teammates with Casey Stoner when you were Marco Melandri, or whoever he came up against.

“Those riders who have the unearthly ability to extract something nobody else can out of motorcycle – Marc’s one of those gifted geniuses.”

Marc Marquez could break these huge records during 2025 MotoGP season

Peter Bom says Marquez has taken up a more ‘comfortable’ riding position at Ducati, where the bike has been termed a ‘GP24.9’. The jump in spec hasn’t been as large as he anticipated after riding a GP23 last term.

The 32-year-old is trying to definitively prove this year that he’s still the best despite the severe arm injuries he suffered in 2020. And the early signs are extremely promising.

Keith Huewen went as far as to say that Bagnaia is ‘cooked’ alongside Marquez. He suspects that the Italian’s stoicism may break down under the unique pressure.

Marquez can become MotoGP’s oldest champion this year, breaking the record set by Valentino Rossi. He’ll also be eyeing the most victories in a season (13) and the most fastest laps of all time (76 – he currently has 63).