Marc Marquez will ‘never’ say one thing about Ducati in public because it would damage the brand

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Marc Marquez has won eight out of 10 races in 2025, including the Sprints. Remarkably, though, he doesn’t lead the world championship.

Heading into the Grand Prix of France next weekend, Marquez sits one point behind his brother Alex in the standings. He’s arguably left around 50 points on the table by falling in Austin and Jerez.

The Ant of Cervera had to retire with the damage he sustained during the Americas GP – a race he led comfortably – and could only recover to 12th after going down at his home race. Based on the Sprint, he would have caught and passed teammate Francesco Bagnaia and shock leader Fabio Quartararo.

Marquez remains the strong favourite for what would be a seventh world title. This week’s Jerez test symbolically kicked off the development race, and Ducati’s GP24 (Gresini’s bike) could soon fall behind.

But there are nagging doubts underpinning the 32-year-old’s largely imperious start at Ducati. He can’t be entirely satisfied.

Marc Marquez will ‘never’ blame the Ducati bike when he crashes

Marquez said after Sunday’s race, via Motorsport.com, that he didn’t understand why he’d crashed. He suggested that the unfamiliar experience of following other bikes may have caught him out.

But journalist Uri Puigdemont noted that he hadn’t blamed the motorcycle. He would ‘never’ criticise his Ducati, instead preferring to take responsibility himself.

Marquez believes there’s nothing to be gained by making such comments in public and understands that they damage the brand. Likewise, he’s ‘the only one’ on the grid who hasn’t attributed an accident to Michelin’s divisive tyres.

Puigdemont said on the Tank Slappers podcast: “He prefers to take the blame and say ‘I was too fast’ [rather] than blaming the bike. He never blames the bike. He will never say that the GP25 Ducati has a problem. That’s my feeling.

“He prefers to take the blame, because it’s the perfect answer. You’re not going to change the outcome of the crash anymore, but you can help the brand, and not damage the Ducati brand by taking the blame and saying, ‘I was a bit too overconfident’.

“He’s the only one that has never blamed the tyres – Michelin. I’m just putting this on the table as a matter of how strategically he plays this game.”

Marc Marquez accidentally proved Davide Tardozzi right with Jerez crash

Marquez has been told to follow Stirling Moss’ advice – to finish first, first you must finish. During his Honda days, he built a reputation as a rider who operated on the limit, which saw him maximise his bike’s potential but also led to occasional accidents.

Even on a dominant Ducati, that trend seems to be continuing. Marquez ranked second in the 2024 crash table when he was riding a year-old GP23.

Two years ago, Davide Tardozzi criticised Marquez’s recklessness. The Spaniard approached him in private to discuss those remarks.

But Marquez has proved the Ducati boss right in his first five weekends. Even at 32, ‘he tries to do more than the bike allows’.