Marc Marquez looked ‘really nervous’ at Misano after facing what Francesco Bagnaia has felt all year

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Ducati rider Marc Marquez will only start the 2025 San Marino Grand Prix from P4, after qualifying 0.218 seconds slower than Aprilia rival Marco Bezzecchi at Misano.

Bezzecchi scored pole for the San Marino GP with a 1:30.134 lap time in Q2 this Saturday, as the Aprilia star denied Gresini ace Alex Marquez by just 0.088s. Fabio Quartararo of Yamaha will also start on the front row at Misano after lapping 0.094s slower than Bezzecchi’s effort.

This weekend’s San Marino GP marks just the fourth time that Marquez has not qualified on the front row over the first 16 of 22 rounds in the 2025 MotoGP season. He also qualified P4 for the British GP in round seven, the Dutch GP in round 10 and the Austrian GP in round 13.

Marquez can win the 2025 title in Japan next time out with a strong performance across the Misano Sprint and San Marino GP. But the 32-year-old will have to overtake his 29-year-old brother, Alex, in both Misano races to earn his first chance to seal the riders’ title at Motegi.

Marc Marquez looked ‘nervous’ with the front-end of his Ducati in qualifying at Misano

Marc Marquez leads Alex Marquez by 182 points atop the 2025 riders’ championship ahead of the Misano Sprint Race. But Sylvain Guintoli feels the Ducati rider looked “really nervous” aboard his Desmosedici GP25 in qualifying for the San Marino GP, which led to his P4 result.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend

Guintoli believes Marquez lacked the feeling he needs with the front-end of the GP25 during Q2 this Saturday to be able to push his Ducati around Misano. The Cervera native also spent more time in the Ducati garage trying to find a fix during the session than some of his rivals.

Guintoli said on TNT Sports 2 (13/09, 10:37): “No, [starting fourth is not where Marquez will want to be]. Looks really nervous. He looks like he didn’t quite get that confidence with the front-end.

“We’ve come from Catalunya, where everything is greasy and you start to feel almost like you’re riding with wet tyres in the dry. And, here, everything is super-sharp, there’s bumps, the track is much, much smaller, it feels narrower, and it’s a lot more aggressive.

“So, you see the bike out of shape and the riders having to really fight them hard. And, with Marc, he didn’t find that edge, that feeling that he really needs.”

Marc Marquez experienced at the San Marino GP what Francesco Bagnaia has faced all year

Marquez has scored more pole positions than any rider in the 2025 MotoGP season, having secured eight through his first 16 rounds as a factory Ducati ace. But he was not at one with his GP25 during qualifying at Misano, causing a 0.218s deficit to pole for the San Marino GP.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Francesco Bagnaia from net worth to race number

The six-time premier class champion’s apparent lack of confidence with the front-end of his GP25 this Saturday even meant Marquez experienced what his Ducati teammate Francesco Bagnaia has faced all year. The 28-year-old Italian only has 237 points to Marquez’s 487 yet.

Ducati saw Bagnaia qualify P8 for the San Marino GP, having lapped Misano 0.280s slower than Aprilia star Bezzecchi. It is the two-time champion’s best qualifying result since his P3 for the Austrian GP, having qualified P15 for the Hungarian GP and P21 for the Catalan GP.

Bagnaia admitted to Marquez that “I’m losing more and more confidence” at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya last weekend, as well. The Turin native has struggled all term to adjust to the GP25’s front-end, which has stripped the 25-time MotoGP polesitter of his self-belief.

Now, Misano has seen Marquez have a taste of what Bagnaia has been dealing with in 2025 since they became teammates at Ducati this season. While Marquez has 10 Grand Prix wins, 14 Sprint wins and eight poles, Bagnaia has one Grand Prix win and one pole position so far.