Marc Marquez shares what he was privately ‘thinking’ about his injury comeback ahead of 2026

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Marc Marquez is gearing up for his Ducati return after missing the last four races of the 2025 MotoGP season through injury.

The Spaniard broke his collarbone at the Indonesian Grand Prix and damaged ligaments around it when Marco Bezzecchi collided with the back of him.

Marquez rarely shows pain, so anyone who saw how he limped away could see that something was quite wrong.

There will be a sense of relief at Ducati that he’s back in time for pre-season testing, regardless of whether he’s not quite at 100% yet.

Change my mind: Marc Marquez is the greatest Ducati rider of all time

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Marquez must watch out for Aprilia’s ‘very strong’ upgrades at pre-season testing, as they look to bring multiple aerodynamic updates to their bike. They might be their strongest competitors.

Marco Bezzecchi knows the ‘key’ to beating Marquez in 2026, and can’t let himself get down if he goes on a good run of form.

READ MORE: Max Biaggi tips Marc Marquez to retire from MotoGP once he achieves one remaining ‘goal’

Marc Marquez was ‘thinking’ about winning again during his injury recovery

Marquez called Ducati’s bluff after they threatened to send him to Pramac for the start of 2025. Adding him to their factory team was one of the best decisions they could ever have made.

It’s a bit early to be thinking about dominating again this season, but if testing goes well, then it would be hard to call him anything but the favourite for the title.

Speaking at Ducati’s 2026 bike launch, he revealed exactly what he has been thinking about this winter while recovering from his injury.

“I think the passion is the main key,” he said. “I have a big passions about riding bikes, but not riding bikes, but competition. It’s the best fuel I have in my body, and a season like 2025 just creates more motivation.

“It’s like sometimes, ‘OK, now you’ve achieved the target, and now you will drop.’ But, it’s [the] opposite. That season, 2025, gives me the power [to] work a lot this winter again, and as you know with a long rehabilitation.

“I was every day working, thinking only that I want to taste again the victory. Let’s see if we can this year.”

READ MORE: Giacomo Agostini says Marc Marquez now faces a ‘difficult’ decision about his MotoGP future

Why Marc Marquez’s advantage might be reduced in 2026

Even though Ducati struggled a bit towards the end of the season, they didn’t have their seven-time champion on his bike.

Marquez’s advantage may be reduced in 2026, with the possibility that Ducati’s next machine aims to incorporate things that their other riders prefer.

That isn’t to say that the GP26 is going to be a GP24, much like Francesco Bagnaia might like, but the developments made should help make it easier than the GP25 was to ride, at times.