Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez’s return to the top of MotoGP with Ducati in 2025 has been a long time in the making after years of injury setbacks.
After dominating the premier class with Honda in the 2010s, the Spaniard’s reign came crashing down in 2020 after his dramatic highside at Jerez, fracturing his right humerus. It would mark the start of a lengthy and brutal recovery period.
Marquez returned to racing too soon after his crash, which only aggravated the injury. Multiple surgeries were performed to repair his arm, but his motivation was dwindling as he constantly crashed on Honda’s bike on his return, due to their regression in development.
Marquez was almost like ‘another person’ during his recovery, as he was angry with his family and those closest to him, according to brother Alex Marquez. Eventually, the 32-year-old decided to leave Honda in 2024 for Gresini, which opened the door to Ducati in 2025.
It turned out to be an incredible decision, as Marquez has dominated the 2025 campaign with 25 wins, including Sprints. Wrapping up the title by Motegi, it has been a long road to recovery, and Kevin Schwantz thinks he knows what has been the biggest help.
Kevin Schwantz says Marc Marquez has been helped ‘the most’ by having Alex Marquez next to him
Speaking to GPOne, the 1993 500cc champion says Alex Marquez has helped Marc ‘the most’ by being his reference point behind the scenes. The brothers were teammates at Honda in 2020 and Gresini in 2024, and have trained together throughout 2025.
“Marc, leaving Honda to go to Ducati, coming back from the injury he suffered, it must have been really, really difficult because he had been racing for so long, so many world championships, so many successes,” said Schwantz.
“It would have been very easy for Marc to say, ‘You know what? That injury was enough and I’m taking a step back”. But not Marc, not him. I think this shows his fighting spirit, his competitive spirit.
“And I’ve said this to a couple of people, but I think that for Marc, what helped him the most was having Alex. His brother is there as a point of reference in the winter, in the off-season.
“We go motocross riding. My brother is even faster than me because I’m not in shape’. He could use that as a yardstick to understand when he was getting back into shape.
“So, I think the Marquez family and the whole family worked together to help Marc get back to where he is, and he’s making this season look pretty easy for him, apart from his mistakes.”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend
When is Marc Marquez due to return from his latest injury with Ducati?
Unfortunately, Marquez has not escaped injury with the Borgo Panigale outfit. He got tangled up in a crash with Marco Bezzecchi at Mandalika, leaving him with a fractured collarbone.
His injury has not affected the one he sustained in 2020, even if it is the same arm. However, Marquez bent one of the screws in his arm, hence why he required surgery after his crash in Indonesia.
The Ant of Cervera will miss the rest of the season and will focus on his recovery ahead of 2026. He aims to return for pre-season testing at Sepang and get to grips with the GP26.
Thanks to Jorge Martin, Marquez will be allowed additional tests after he got the rules changed for injured riders. After struggling with numerous setbacks in 2025, the Aprilia star was granted more testing to get used to his bike; Marquez will have the same luxury next year.
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