Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez added to his legend at Motegi last weekend as he wrapped up the 2025 MotoGP championship. He is now a seven-time premier class champion.
Marquez has equalled his nemesis Valentino Rossi for MotoGP and motorcycle Grand Prix titles. He has utterly dominated the 2025 campaign with Ducati, winning 11 races and all but three Sprint events thus far.
Second place was enough for the Spaniard to seal the deal at Motegi as he finished behind Ducati teammate Francesco Bagnaia for the first time on pure merit. Neil Hodgson felt Marquez looked like Bagnaia as he appeared uncomfortable on the GP25.
The Ant of Cervera’s dominance with Ducati resembles his performance levels at Honda when he won six titles in the 2010s. Mat Oxley says Marquez now has a faster package than in the past, but his skill and talent remain the same.
The Spaniard left Honda in 2024 after struggling with complications from his injury sustained in 2020 at Jerez, as well as the team’s regression. Many believed that he would never recover from the horrific crash.
Marc Marquez confidante realised he would return to his old self after winning at Sachsenring in 2021
Marquez missed the entire 2020 season after breaking the humerus in his right arm. He had attempted to return at the next race, but a slipped plate in the arm ruled him out for the rest of the year and the start of 2021.
He went on to win three races with Honda that year, before struggling with further setbacks, with more crashes resulting in his humerus rotating 34 degrees out of place. While Marquez did consider retiring, he was determined to make a comeback.
For his assistant, Jose Luis Martinez, and his physio, Carlos Garcia, his win at the Sachsenring in 2021 was the moment they knew he would return to his old self. It was his first win since the crash at Jerez, and it gave them a ‘little light’.
Speaking via the official MotoGP YouTube channel, Martinez recalled: “The victory in Germany, his first victory since the crash,” as one of the best moments of his comeback. Garcia added: “Because it gave us a little light that Marc would be able to be competitive again.
“When the Mayo Clinic told us there was a solution. They said: ‘Come here. Come as soon as possible, we’ll solve it’. With that message, we knew Marc was going to be able to return to what he was before.”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend
Will Marc Marquez return to Honda one day?
Alberto Puig picked the 2021 German GP as Marquez’s best win at Honda. It marked an incredible comeback from his injury the year before, but his 2025 triumph with Ducati holds much more weight.
The Borgo Panigale outfit made the right call in signing the Spaniard as he has brought the team to sensational heights. Luigi Dall’Igna is ‘savouring’ his time with Marquez, knowing that it could soon be over.
At 32 years old, the Spaniard is approaching the end of his career, but he intends to go on for as long as possible. Marquez will retire when he can no longer win, which, at his current form, does not seem likely to change anytime soon.
His contract expires at Ducati in 2026, and the team will be keen to keep him on board. But given his success, Marquez’s return to Honda is ‘inevitable’, as he can finish what he started and add to his legacy.
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