Gresini technician reveals the ‘unbelievable’ thing Marc Marquez used to do on a piece of paper in the garage

Add as preferred source on Google

Marc Marquez’s 2024 MotoGP season at Gresini was, in retrospect, a glimpse of what was to come at Ducati. His stint with the satellite squad was brief, but he left his engineers awestruck nonetheless.

After his bombshell decision to leave Honda before the end of his contract, Marquez joined Gresini as a route to the dominant Ducati team. Injuries, in addition to Honda’s decline, had seen him go two seasons without a win.

Marquez was a factor, rather than a protagonist, in the title race between Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin. Riding a year-old GP23, he didn’t have the tools to mount his own challenge, but he did pick up three victories.

He scored nearly 400 points, more than doubling the tally of his brother Alex on the other side of the garage. VR46 duo Fabio di Giannantonio and Marco Bezzecchi were 10th and 12th in the standings respectively with the same equipment.

Marc Marquez could accurately predict a MotoGP throttle trace

Speaking to Motorsport Magazine, suspension technician Mike Watt, who worked with Marquez at Gresini, revealed the ‘unbelievable’ precision of his feedback.

The six-time premier-class champion could apparently sketch out an accurate throttle trace on a piece of paper. Watt and crew chief Frankie Carchedi were stunned when they compared his estimate to the real data.

It was telling that Marquez saw off competition from Martin, the eventual world champion, to land the factory seat alongside Bagnaia for 2025. When Ducati combined his results, telemetry and the feedback from Gresini, the case was overwhelming.

“Sometimes Marc came in, thought about what was going on, then drew a graph on a piece of paper, maybe showing throttle trace, brake point and front suspension stroke,” Watt, who also worked with legendary rider Wayne Rainey, recalled.

“We laid the paper over the data on the screen and they were the same! It was unbelievable! The first time he did it, me and Frankie were like, ‘What the!?’ Just incredible.

Frankie Carchedi says Marc Marquez can do one thing ‘no-one else’ can

In an interview the same outlet, crew chief Carchedi raved about Marquez’s unprecedented ‘level of knowledge’. He knows how to set up a bike to unleash his notoriously aggressive riding style.

Carchedi says no other rider can match Marquez’s feel for the ‘front tyre’s limit’. His volume of crashes has fallen considerably this year.

• READ MORE: The MotoGP riders at the top of the 2025 crash leaderboard including Brad Binder and Jack Miller

“In all my years in racing I’ve not known any rider to have his level of knowledge about the bike and about set-up,” Carchedi said.

“It’s not just about how he rides. It’s about how he likes the bike to be set up so he can do what he wants to do. Marc has the ability to feel the front tyre’s limit like no-one else.”

Alex Marquez doesn’t think it’s essential to join Ducati, having flourished at Gresini himself. He could be in line for a factory bike next year.

But even if every rider in their ranks was on equal machinery, it’s doubtful that they could reach the level the Ant of Cervera has hit this season.