Marco Bezzecchi
All eyes are on Marc Marquez as he rides his 2026 Ducati for the first time in MotoGP testing at Sepang.
The Ant of Cervera comes into 2026 off the back of a lengthy recovery from injury at the end of 2025. He has not ridden a MotoGP bike before heading to Malaysia, having only taken part in private tests on street bikes.
Nevertheless, he continued where he left off as Marquez set the fastest time on day one. But, of course, and as the Ducati rider said himself, the time means next to nothing at this stage, as the most important thing is him getting comfortable on a MotoGP bike again.
Picking up where he left off, is this the start of MotoGP title #8 for Marc Marquez? 🧐
Let us know in the comments below!
Marquez admitted he was stiff on the bike in the morning session on Tuesday, telling Ducati personnel that he needed time before going out on track. He felt much more comfortable on day two as he racked up more miles.
The Spaniard is starting to get a feel for the GP26, having missed out on the chance to ride it in Valencia at the end of last year. Having now tested the machine, Marquez has issued a verdict that will worry his biggest rivals.
Marc Marquez worryingly claims the GP26 is better than last year’s Ducati
The Desmosedici GP25 was a contentious issue in MotoGP last year. While it had only a few differences from the GP24, it was widely considered to be a step backwards, at least for everyone except Marquez.
The 32-year-old was the only one to get the best from the machine, with teammate Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Di Giannantonio struggling to perform. Whatever issue the bike had, Marquez rode around it and won 11 Grand Prix and 14 Sprints.
Naturally, Ducati will be looking to improve the bike and get their riders comfortable. It seems that they have achieved that, as the GP26 left all Ducati riders smiling after testing it in Malaysia.
What do you expect Marc Marquez to achieve in 2026?
Marquez had a more emphatic verdict via Marca, stating that the new Desmosedici was a step up from its predecessor: “This bike feels better than last year’s, but we have to take it one step at a time,” he said. “The thing is, as always, what you gain here you lose there.”
Having won 25 races across 2025 on the GP25, to say that the GP26 is even better is a worrying thing to hear for Marquez’s rivals. He proved almost unstoppable last year, and if this bike is a better machine, he could be even more dominant in 2026.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend
Marc Marquez is not looking at Francesco Bagnaia’s or Alex Marquez’s data in Malaysia
The sole purpose of the Sepang test is for Ducati to get their star rider up to speed with the bike and try out components to improve its performance. Marquez has experimented with the GP24 aero in one eye-catching change to the machine.
As Marquez has stated himself, the lap times do not matter too much. In fact, he is not looking at the data from Bagnaia or his brother Alex.
“I haven’t looked at a single lap on the telemetry; I’m focused on my own thing,” he said. “These are tests where I knew today was a day to try out more things on the bike.
“Yesterday, I put on the (soft) tire at the end of the day; today, I’ve been riding all morning on the medium rear tire. For this afternoon, I had the softs, but not to set a time, rather to test different aerodynamic aspects, which we’ll carry over to tomorrow.”
Receive racing news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
