Marc Marquez is keeping his cards close to his chest, but former MotoGP title rival and Repsol Honda team-mate Jorge Lorenzo thinks a Gresini Ducati move is ‘done’.
Absent since fracturing his right tibia and fibula at Mugello in May, Alex Rins has been passed fit to make a MotoGP return for LCR Honda at Motegi this weekend.
Amid a rumoured Marc Marquez move to Gresini, would rival manufacturers be more willing to allow revised MotoGP technical concessions for Honda and Yamaha if he leaves?
Marc Marquez has played down the significance of comments by senior Ducati management suggesting the six-time MotoGP champion is indeed in talks for a shock switch to Gresini next season.
Jaume Masia handled everything thrown at him, mastering the new track, heat and rain for pole in qualifying for the Moto3 Indian Grand Prix as Daniel Holgado remained stuck in Q1.
Ducati sporting director Paolo Ciabatti believes Gresini has an ‘opportunity’ to sign Marc Marquez for the 2024 MotoGP season and ‘are waiting for his decision’.
Marc Marquez may have finished 13 seconds behind Misano MotoGP winner Jorge Martin, but he was still 21.7s faster than the next-best Honda for his best Sunday result of the year.
Marc Marquez rode a tactical MotoGP Sprint race at Misano, finishing in tenth place after avoiding battles and hooking a tow from faster riders to ‘escape’.
On the pace all weekend, Jaume Masia had the confidence to go it alone, and it paid off for pole in qualifying for the Moto3 San Marino Grand Prix in Misano.
Marc Marquez secures direct access to Qualifying 2 at Misano after hitching a tow behind former team-mate Dani Pedrosa during Friday practice for the San Marino MotoGP.
Another day and another chance for Marc Marquez to extinguish the speculation over his MotoGP future passes without clarification, further fuelling rumours of a shock switch to Gresini Ducati.
Marc Marquez was the top Honda rider on Friday in Catalunya, but with all four RCVs at the bottom of the timesheets the factory’s MotoGP woes were exposed for all to see.
With his first Sunday MotoGP points of the year finally in the bag, Marc Marquez will be hoping his ‘calm approach’ now brings his first home Catalunya points since 2019 this weekend.
Increased Honda support could have made it a harder decision but Alex Rins switching from the satellite LCR team to the factory Yamaha MotoGP project for 2024 wasn’t a surprise for Simon Crafar.