Marco Bezzecchi
Heading into the second race of the 2025 MotoGP season, it is clear Marc Marquez had a huge advantage over Francesco Bagnaia at Ducati.
The Italian is hopeful of a return to glory in the premier class after losing to Jorge Martin in 2024. Bagnaia won 11 out of 20 races last year and is a strong contender for the title on the GP25.
However, he faces fierce competition from Marquez on the other side of the Ducati garage. After finishing third with three wins and 10 podiums on the GP23 last year, the Spaniard has made a seamless jump up two specs of bike.
Marquez dominated the Thailand Grand Prix with pole position, the Sprint win and victory in the main race. With Bagnaia finishing third behind his teammate and brother Alex Marquez, the Italian is already 14 points behind.
Bagnaia is looking to play fair with his teammate – a sharp contrast to Marquez’s arch-rival Valentino Rossi during their tense battle in MotoGP. However, after the six-time champion’s start to the year, the Italian must step up.
Fans flocked to Marquez’s area in the paddock at the Argentina Grand Prix – this will be disheartening for Bagnaia to see as the Spaniard asserts his dominance at Ducati.
Mick Doohan says Francesco Bagnaia ‘has to’ use pressure as motivation to battle Marc Marquez
Ducati engineers are already gravitating towards Marquez after just one race. Bagnaia will be – or must be – keen to change that and battle his teammate.
Bagnaia has taken Pol Espargaro’s advice in Argentina and has looked to start the weekend strong from the off. But the Italian again could not match Marquez as the Spaniard took his second pole position in qualifying.
The Italian will line up fourth behind the Marquez brothers and Johann Zarco. Bagnaia narrowly made it to Q2 after finishing 10th in free practice – he crashed at turn two while under pressure at the final stages.
It is clear the 28-year-old is feeling the pressure from Marquez’s dominance and he must act fast to get the upper hand. Speaking to Sky Sport Italy from the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, MotoGP legend Mick Doohan offered his advice to Bagnaia.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Francesco Bagnaia from net worth to race number
The Aussie says he ‘has to’ use the pressure as motivation to battle Marquez and understand what his teammate is doing with the GP25.
Asked whether he felt Bagnaia is feeling the pressure, Doohan replied: “After the last race in Thailand, of course. At the tests he saw that he has a very strong challenger and he knew how good Marc was last year.
“He’s not stupid, he knows he’s under pressure, but he has to use it as motivation to improve. Understand what Marquez does and see if he can do something better. Both mentally and physically, working with the team, he can do it. They are two champions and it will certainly be interesting.”
Can Francesco Bagnaia fight back to beat Marc Marquez in Argentina?
Bagnaia cannot be discounted from the race win in Argentina. However, his performance compared to Marquez in qualifying spells bad news for the Italian.
The Spaniard was the only rider to break into the 1:36s in Q2 as he took a commanding pole position. Bagnaia was over two tenths down as he again offered little challenge.
Everyone in the paddock is expecting Marquez to win in Argentina – he has the joint-most wins at the circuit in MotoGP history. Termas de Rio Hondo has never favoured Bagnaia and some fear it may take time for the Italian to beat his teammate.
Sylvain Guntoli sees Qatar as Bagnaia’s ‘first chance’ to get the better of Marquez. Many will feel that is too far away for the 28-year-old to finally beat his teammate – he must find another gear before then.
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