Marc Marquez's first feedback after testing the factory Ducati
"I tried the full 2025 package: Frame, engine and different things"
Just as a year ago on his Gresini debut, Marc Marquez finished his first MotoGP test as an official Ducati Lenovo rider with fourth place on the timesheets.
While last year he was making his Desmosedici debut on a satellite bike at Valencia, this year he was focusing on a prototype version of next year’s factory GP25 at Barcelona.
Riding in a special bright red livery, the eight-time world champion spent much of the day at the lower end of the top ten.
A late surge then put him into fourth, 0.651s from test leader, younger brother and former team-mate Alex Marquez.
But Marquez, a factory Honda rider from 2013-2023, was just 0.056s behind new team-mate and outgoing double world champion Francesco Bagnaia.
Marquez revealed he had effectively skipped the GP24 and gone straight from the year-old GP23 to next season's 2025 machine.
“I tried the GP25 most of the day, 90% of the time I was riding with the 25,” Marquez confirmed. “So I was working a lot for the engineers.
“Because when you jump to the official team, it means that you have a very strict plan with all the things you need to try and the rider is in the hands of the engineers. You are there working for the engineers.
“It’s true that the bike has some positive things that work a bit better. But in the end it's a bike and you need to ride in a good way. If you want to be fast, you need to push.
“But the feeling was super good, especially with the team. That is the most important on the first impression, and we work in a good way."
Pressed on what feels better, Marquez replied:
“The engine is a bit better on the straight, so that also is important comparing with last year’s bike. And then it looks like the character of going in on the corner is a bit different. Still there I need to understand where is the limit.”
“The thing is that I tried the full package 25: Frame, engine and different things,” he added. “So we don't know which [individual parts] feel different.
“Then Pecco was working a little bit in a different way. But the most important is that both of us had very similar comments. Same problems, same advantages. So this makes life easier for the engineers.”
Ducati test rider Michele Pirro suggested the GP25 would especially suit strong brakers, such as Marquez and Bagnaia.
For now, Marquez is reserving judgment.
"Still we need more time to understand because, with Pecco, we had similar comments. It's true that it's super good in some aspects, but a little bit more difficult in other aspects," he said.
"So now we need to evaluate, because you need to have a 'stable' bike on all 22 rounds. Not very fast in one kind of track."
But did it feel strange to ride in red after so many years battling against the factory Ducati team as a Repsol Honda and then Gresini rider?
"No, it was a pleasure," Marquez said. "Especially when you arrive in a team that performed in a better way these last years.
"You have the responsibility to be fast because you're in the best team on the grid. So it was a pleasure to be inside that garage.
"But it’s true that seeing Tardozzi [in my garage was strange], after all my fights with Dovizioso!
"But we always had a very good and polite relationship. So this helps, also because we already know each other."
Marquez has to wait until Sepang in February for his next outing on the GP25.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
