2025 Thai MotoGP: Marc Marquez cruises to first sprint as factory Ducati rider
Eight-time world champion makes winning start to life at new MotoGP team
Marc Marquez opened the 2025 MotoGP season at the Thai Grand Prix by cruising to his first sprint victory as a factory Ducati team rider on Saturday.
The blockbuster rider signing of last summer, Marquez’s move to the factory Ducati team came with the expectation that the 32-year-old would be a contender for his seventh premier class crown from the off.
Qualifying on pole over younger brother Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing) and his factory team-mate Francesco Bagnaia, Marc Marquez led from start to finish in the 13-lap sprint.
He took the chequered flag over a second clear of Alex Marquez, with Marc Marquez leading the championship for the first time since he was last world champion in 2019 when he was still a Honda rider.
The qualifying order for the top three stayed the same for the sprint, while Trackhouse Aprilia rookie Ai Ogura stunned in fourth ahead of VR46’s Franco Morbidelli.
Marc Marquez grabbed the holeshot off the line on his factory GP25, with Alex Marquez slotting in behind after fending off a very brief Turn 1 challenge from Bagnaia.
By the end of the second lap, Marc Marquez was over seven tenths clear of the field, while Bagnaia was already struggling to stay on terms with the pair ahead.
He crossed the line to start lap three a second adrift of Alex Marquez and had Ogura breathing down his neck.
Marc Marquez got his lead up to over a second for the first time at the start of lap seven and maintained this advantage through to the chequered flag.
He was 1.185s clear of Alex Marquez, who came under no threat from Bagnaia behind in a comfortable second.
Bagnaia was able to keep Ogura at bay, but the rookie was only 0.969s behind the double MotoGP champion in his first ever MotoGP race having started fifth on the grid.
VR46’s Morbidelli - who will serve as three-place grid penalty on Sunday, dropping him to ninth for the grand prix - was a lonely fifth ahead of top KTM Pedro Acosta.
Fabio Quartararo inherited top Yamaha honours in seventh after Pramac’s Jack Miller crashed out of the top six on lap seven.
Brad Binder faded to eighth after an early battle with factory KTM team-mate Acosta, while the final sprint point went to Honda’s Joan Mir.
This marked just his second ever sprint points and his first since the 2024 Spanish GP.
Honda stablemate Johann Zarco (LCR) was 0.756s further back in 10th, while Raul Fernandez was over 10 seconds behind rookie team-mate Ogura in 11th.
Marco Bezzecchi’s Aprilia race debut went wrong at the start when wheelspin off the line dumped him down to 19th at the opening corner.
He recovered to finish 12th ahead of Gresini Ducati rookie Fermin Aldeguer.
VR46’s Fabio Di Giannantonio was the only other retirement in the race, pulling out late on with an apparent issue.
