Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez does not feel he can even think about winning the 2026 MotoGP riders’ title until he rediscovers the “consistency” that took him to the championship in 2025.
The Ducati rider thinks his results so far this season have proven that he still has the pace to deliver strong performances. But Marquez cannot overlook that his races, particularly in the Grands Prix, have not been to the same standard that saw him dominate MotoGP last term.
Marquez won 11 of the 18 Grands Prix that he started last term and finished on the podium a total of 15 times. The Spaniard also won seven successive Grands Prix from round eight at Aragon to round 14 in Hungary, as well as winning 14 of the first 15 Sprint Races last season.
Altogether, those results led to Marquez winning the 2025 MotoGP title with five rounds to spare before he sustained a season-ending shoulder injury in Indonesia. His surgery has had a negative effect on results so far in 2026, as well as his issues adapting to the Ducati GP26.
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Marc Marquez cannot think about the 2026 MotoGP title until he improves his consistency
Marquez is “struggling” in fast corners on the Ducati GP26, as he lacks a feeling for the front end of the bike compared to what he enjoyed on the GP25 last season. The 33-year-old also believes he lacks the same “consistency”, and without that he cannot fight for the 2026 title.
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Marquez told AS: “Potential is determined by results. And the results show that there’s speed, but not consistency.
“That’s where we need to focus or try to understand why we’re lacking this consistency, which was our strong point last year, in all kinds of conditions, on all kinds of tracks, and this year it’s been much more inconsistent.
“Little by little, I think we’ll solve it. But it’s true that, at the moment, with the results we’ve shown, especially on Sundays, we can’t think about winning a title.”
Aprilia ace Marco Bezzecchi tops the 2026 riders’ standings ahead of this weekend’s French Grand Prix, with the Italian boasting 101 points. Marquez has only scored 57 points after the first four rounds, and he has also yet to score a Grand Prix podium – with a best finish of P4.
Marquez is fifth in the riders’ standings entering the French GP weekend, and he is not even the top Ducati rider with VR46 rival Fabio Di Giannantonio ranking third with 71 points. The Italian has also recorded two Grand Prix podiums this season, with P3 in Brazil and at Jerez.
Yet no rider has been as consistent in Sprint Races so far this season than Marquez, who has taken the most Sprint podiums with three from four races – including two wins. Also, Ducati saw Marquez’s penalty hand Pedro Acosta the Buriram Sprint win in round one in Thailand.
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