Worrying KTM outing exposed by Argentina MotoGP rider ratings

Marc Marquez maintained his 100% winning streak in 2025 after beating his brother Alex Marquez in both races at the MotoGP Argentina Grand Prix.

The top two was as you were from Thailand, though Alex Marquez pushed his brother hard in both races on his way to runner-up spots.

Pecco Bagnaia disappointed as he failed to make the podium in the grand prix and is now 31 points behind team-mate Marc Marquez in the standings.

Elsewhere on the grid, Honda starred as Johann Zarco gave the Japanese marque its best weekend in well over a year for LCR.

A star rookie showing for Ai Ogura was curtailed by a technical infringement leading to him being disqualified, while KTM and Yamaha leave Argentina with work to do.

Here are are Crash.net's rankings of the entire grid at the 2025 Argentina GP.

Marc Marquez - 9/10

While the expected total domination of the Argentina weekend didn’t materialise, there was little doubt that Marc Marquez wouldn’t win both races at Termas de Rio Hondo. Qualifying on pole with a new all-time lap record, finally demolishing his previous effort from 2014, he kept his younger brother Alex Marquez at bay in the sprint to win by just under a second. What keeps him from a perfect score is the mistake he was pushed into by Alex Marquez at Turn 1 on the fourth lap of 25 in the grand prix.

Unlike in Thailand when he deliberately dropped into second, Marc Marquez was forced to work hard to get back into the lead - though once he did he cleared off by over a second to the chequered flag. Not fully happy with his bike throughout the weekend, the factory Ducati rider still stood up when it mattered and even with his mistake was hard to beat.

Alex Marquez - 8.5/10

From the off in Argentina Alex Marquez was clearly going to be leaving South America with at least second place again. Though a typically good circuit for the Gresini rider, he really did push Marc Marquez throughout and kept both races interesting. When he led from laps four to 20 on his GP24, he really didn’t put a foot wrong and his pace was good enough to absorb the pressure being exerted on him; at points, it even pushed Marc Marquez into some mistakes.

Not quite able still to put it all together, Alex Marquez had to settle for a brace of seconds again. But he can hang his head high at his performance in Argentina and genuinely start to believe that his first MotoGP grand prix win is not far off.

Franco Morbidelli - 7/10

Franco Morbidelli’s Argentina weekend was a bit of a whirlwind, as he couldn’t hook things up in qualifying to only put his VR46 Ducati eighth having come through Q1. Then in the sprint he was involved in a tangle with KTM’s Brad Binder on the first lap, which was deemed a racing incident. But Morbidelli couldn’t advance on seventh in the 12-lapper.

Opting for an alternate strategy and running the soft rear for the grand prix, Morbidelli made it count to run the Marquez brothers close in the first half of the race and then fend off Pecco Bagnaia late on to score his first MotoGP podium in 1414 days. With the rumours surrounding VR46 about a possible Pedro Acosta link-up in 2026, Morbidelli proving he does have frontrunning form on the GP24 Ducati is well-timed.

Pecco Bagnaia - 4/10

On paper, third and fourth is an ok return from another tough weekend. But when his team-mate is turning out the performances he is, and even Alex Marquez is a clear step ahead, Pecco Bagnaia’s struggles are disappointing.

He has pointed the finger at several factors, though both he and Ducati seem somewhat lost as to what the real issue is. Narrowly holding onto a Q2 place after a crash on Friday, he didn’t really do much to challenge for pole in fourth. Third came in the sprint, but he had nothing for the Marquez brothers and came away from the grand prix without a podium (in a race he has finished) since Austin last year.

All of this from a rider who won 11 grands prix last year and missed a third world title by just 10 points is alarming.

Fabio Di Giannantonio - 7/10

Fabio Di Giannantonio has made such a solid start to the 2025 season that it makes you wonder where he could be at right now had he not missed all of testing with an injury. Qualifying on the second row on his VR46-run GP25, he managed fifth in the sprint and used the same soft tyre strategy as his team-mate to come through to fifth in the grand prix.

With a better start to his race Di Giannantonio may well have been able to put Bagnaia under pressure for fourth. But given the context of his recent injury, Di Giannantonio is on the right path to being a consistent podium challenger in the coming weeks.

Johann Zarco - 9/10

It would be nice to give Johann Zarco a perfect score for what was an incredible weekend, but that won’t be far off if he carries on like he did in Argentina. In his hands at least, Honda’s march back to the front has been somewhat accelerated. He qualified on the front row, giving Honda its best grid position since the 2023 Italian GP, and had pace enough to battle for the podium.

That didn’t quite pan out, as he finished fourth and sixth in both races. But he put Bagnaia under some pressure early on in the grand prix and may well have had a better chance at chasing down the Marquez brothers had it not been for his Honda’s lack of grunt.

With such a big handicap, Zarco couldn’t do much more. But Honda should take a lot of confidence from the LCR rider’s Argentina weekend.

Brad Binder - 6/10

It was a mixed bag for KTM again, and especially Brad Binder. He was outclassed by his team-mate Pedro Acosta in qualifying, with the South African only 11th on the grid. He was knocked out of the sprint on lap one in a tangle with Morbidelli, though he battled hard in the grand prix to take the chequered flag in seventh.

Beating Acosta is a feather in his cap, but the KTM’s problem holding onto tyre life meant Binder was almost seven seconds away from the top six and a Honda.

Pedro Acosta - 5.5/10

The contrast to the first few races of 2025 compared to 2024 is stark for Pedro Acosta. The 20-year-old is clearly the fastest KTM rider right now still, as his run to fifth on the grid in qualifying can attest to. But he seemed to struggle more come the races, dropping to ninth in the sprint and being overhauled by team-mate Binder in the grand prix.

As KTM’s woes continue, one has to wonder how distracted Acosta is becoming with all the noise his manager is making about his MotoGP future.

Joan Mir - 6/10

A few months ago, Joan Mir qualifying 10th and scoring points in both races would be a pretty big deal. But in Argentina it felt like the factory Honda rider underdelivered relative to what the bike was clearly capable of.

He was unfortunate to not make a bid for Q2 on Friday afternoon due to a duff tyre, but he managed to get through Q1. He couldn’t get higher than 10th on the grid, which is a problem when the Honda doesn’t have any guts to battle the bikes around it. Eighth was solid enough in the sprint, while he cracked the top 10 in the grand prix - which became ninth when Ai Ogura was disqualified.

Honda is getting there, but it would be good to start seeing a little bit more from the 2020 world champion.

Luca Marini - 5.5/10

Luca Marini achieved his best result as a Honda rider in the Argentina GP, as he took the chequered flag 11th - which became 10th following Ogura’s penalty. He couldn’t get near the points in the sprint, which is a direct result of a disappointing qualifying in 16th.

Marini took a bit of time to get up to speed last year, but with the progress the Honda is making he needs to step up on a more consistent basis.

Alex Rins - 5/10

Most of Alex Rins’ score comes from his brilliant lap in Practice to bag a rare direct appearance in Q2 for the Yamaha rider. He didn’t really make the most of the opportunity, though, as he ultimately qualified in 12th. He didn’t advance on this in the sprint and was 12th at the chequered flag in the grand prix before being promoted to 11th.

He still ended the grand prix as top Yamaha rider, with the bike’s typical rear grip issues proving a problem for its runners.

Maverick Vinales - 3.5/10

There really isn’t much positive to say about either Tech3 rider’s Argentina GP. Maverick Vinales was only quicker than Enea Bastianini and Lorenzo Savadori in qualifying, and was a lowly 18th in the sprint.

He had a marginally better grand prix as he worked his way up to 13th (12th after Ogura’s penalty), but Vinales is clearly a long way off getting to grips with the KTM.

Jack Miller - 3/10

The Pramac Yamaha rider was unlucky to miss out on a Q2 place in a tight Q1 session, with Jack Miller making up a couple of places in the sprint to 11th. Some wheelspin off the line dropped him down the order, while his choice of medium rear tyre didn’t really give him any tools to fight with and his progress stalled at 14th.

Fabio Quartararo - 4.5/10

Fabio Quartararo’s Argentina GP weekend is something of a case of what-if. He qualified a respectable seventh on his factory M1, but got bullied in the sprint and ended up without a point in 10th as he battled a lack of rear grip. His grand prix was compromised at Turn 1 when Marco Bezzecchi slammed into him and knocked him wide, forcing the 2021 world champion into a recovery ride. He managed to get to 15th for his efforts.

Raul Fernandez - 2/10

There isn’t much to say about Raul Fernandez’s Argentina GP. He was outclassed by rookie Trackhouse Aprilia team-mate Ai Ogura at every turn. Fernandez qualified down in 18th and made it to 16th in the sprint. In the grand prix he tangled with Enea Bastianini on lap two, which netted the Trackhouse rider a long lap penalty. He got to the chequered flag in 16th but was bumped up to 15th by Ogura’s penalty.

Enea Bastianini - 2.5/10

Perhaps Enea Bastianini’s tyre preservation skills could have seen him rise up the order from what became last on the grid come Sunday. But a lap-two collision with Raul Fernandez put paid to this. He rejoined and got some valuable data on the Tech3 KTM, but 18th was all he could manage. His jump to 14th in the sprint suggests things could have been better, but not much.

Fermin Aldeguer - 2/10

The Gresini rookie learned some hard lessons in Argentina. Solid in qualifying to put his Gresini Ducati 14th and also be top rookie on the grid, he didn’t convert this into anything meaningful. He collided with Miguel Oliveira in the sprint, which earned him a long lap penalty for the grand prix. After serving this, he could do no better than 17th.

Somkiat Chantra - 1.5/10

The frustrating thing about Somkiat Chantra’s Argentina weekend was the fact that at some stages of sessions he looked pretty quick. He outqualified the two Tech3 KTMs and Aprilia’s Lorenzo Savadori and was 17th in the sprint. But a lack of grip on his LCR Honda meant he was passed by Enea Bastianini - who crashed on lap two - and was 41.693s off the lead at the chequered flag in last.

Ai Ogura - 5.5/10

Trackhouse rookie Ai Ogura was expecting a tougher weekend in Argentina, which is what he got. Qualifying 15th, he was a bit underwhelming - by his already lofty standards - in the sprint. But in the grand prix he was quite brilliant, rising up to eighth and salvaging a miserable day for Aprilia. A non-homologated software on his ECU meant he got disqualified from the result, but the form can’t be stripped from him.

Marco Bezzecchi - 5/10

Winner of MotoGP’s previous visit to Argentina, Marco Bezzecchi showed some good speed again on the factory Aprilia. Though clearly needing to work still on his time attack form, ninth was an ok starting point. He used it to get to sixth in the sprint, but undone all his hard work with a silly mistake on the brakes into Turn 1 at the start of the grand prix. He was taken out on the spot and Fabio Quartararo’s race was ruined.

Lorenzo Savadori - 2/10

Giving Lorenzo Savadori any ratings seems a bit pointless given the role he has been thrust into in Jorge Martin’s absence. With Aprilia using his presence to test things, he’s not really getting much time to focus on himself. His weekend was ruined in Q1 when he suffered a big moment on gas and partially dislocated his shoulder. The pain forced him to retire from the sprint and he was held out of the Aprilia line-up for the grand prix.

Miguel Oliveira - 2/10

Again, Miguel Oliveira’s weekend is hard to rate because he only completed half of it. Taken out by Aldeguer in the sprint, damaged ligaments forced him to withdraw from the grand prix. When he was fit on the bike, he was someway off the other Yamahas in 17th on the grid.