Marc Marquez hit with “I see a different side” warning about Pecco Bagnaia

Marc Marquez has been warned that his current dominance over his top MotoGP rivals isn’t as one-sided as it seems.

The factory Ducati rider won the sprint race on Saturday at the Argentina MotoGP, and will start Sunday’s grand prix from pole position.

He won both races at the season-opening Thailand round to lead the championship.

Teammate Francesco Bagnaia trails him, and his brother Alex Marquez who is riding a year-old Ducati.

But Bagnaia can even the score against Marquez soon, it has been claimed.

“For Pecco, this is when we see his mettle. We’ll see his mental approach,” TNT Sports’ Michael Laverty insisted.

“You know the media will keep writing ‘Pecco is going to break’ and ‘the cracks are starting to show’.

“But I see another side of Pecco. I see a resilience.

“To turn it around on this tough track - this is his best result at Termas - that’s seven solid points.

“He’s 19 points down after three races. Not a disaster, by any means.

“One mistake by Marc and a second-place by Pecco and it’s all even again. And we will go to some good tracks for Pecco.

“Everyone is talking ‘Marc is crushing him’. But I see a difference. I think Pecco is doing what he can do, getting the best out of his package on a tough weekend for him.”

Read more: Francesco Bagnaia pace analysis after "we've reduced the gap" claim

Argentina, and the next round in Texas, were expected to be favourable for the in-form Marquez.

But the 2025 MotoGP season will soon hit European tracks where two-time champion Bagnaia can have his say.

Alex Marquez feted in Argentina MotoGP sprint

Arguably the shock of the season so far is the pace of Alex Marquez.

He is ahead of Bagnaia on inferior machinery, from qualifying to the grands prix on the evidence of Thailand’s full weekend and Saturday in Argentina.

Laverty said about Gresini’s rider on Saturday: “A masterclass from the Marquez brothers.

“I thought Alex might have a go at Marc. But you know Marc has an advantage. If you race him, then Pecco catches up.

“Alex has been second every time, behind Marc. His day will come when he has a bit more than Marc.

“He was never really close enough to pull a move that wouldn’t have put both riders wide, because Marc is good on the brakes.

“It’s interesting how similar the two bikes are. Alex was trying to get creative but he was absolutely on the limit.”