Why Malaysian MotoGP will be “interesting” for Ducati, claims Alex Marquez

Gresini’s Alex Marquez says the Malaysian Grand Prix will be “interesting” as it will allow Ducati to see just how much its rivals have closed in since pre-season testing.

MotoGP returns to its first test venue from the pre-season in 2025 at Sepang for the 20th round of the campaign.

Though Ducati in February encountered some issues with its new engine on its factory bike, it still looked the clear favourite relative to the rest of the grid, with Alex Marquez particularly strong on his GP24.

And while Ducati dominated much of the season to win the world championship with Marc Marquez, it has been steadily caught in the second half of the year by its rivals - and, in particular, Aprilia.

“We will see where we are on Friday, and from that moment we will try to work to be faster and faster, and have the potential,” Alex Marquez, who won the sprint at Sepang in 2023, said.

“So, just this track, it’s really important to have flow, to have consistency, and keep the lap times in a really good way.

“It will be interesting to see from the pre-season how much the other manufacturers have improved, because we have exactly the same bike.

“So, it will be important to see where Aprilia, Honda, Yamaha, and KTM are.”

He added: “For sure, Marco [Bezzecchi] is in really good form, is in a really good way, and he’ll be really fast here.

“But, also, I’m expecting Pecco to be so fast here. He has always been fast here.

“So, it will be interesting to see where he is. We will try our best, we will try to be there, try to be really focused.

“It’s true that normally here we are really good on traction, on grip, and all that.

“But we saw in the last race that Aprilia also has that. So, it will be interesting to see where we are and where the others are.”

Alex Marquez can secure second in 2025 standings at Sepang

With three rounds and 111 points left, Alex Marquez can secure second in the standings this weekend.

Currently leading Bezzecchi by 97 points, he simply needs to leave Sepang with an advantage of more than 74 points to do so.

Even with this hanging over him, Marquez says he feels like he can come to Sepang and “risk”.

“The mindset is that we need to do the job as we do it always, being really clever,” he said.

“But especially here, when you arrive at a track that you know you are fast at, it makes you relaxed and confident to know that if you make the job in the right moment and well, you will be fast.

“So, it’s what we need to do: be really clever from the first moment.

“The weather could be a little bit unpredictable, so we need to be aware of that and really clever on those points.

“We passed three weekends, which I already expected to struggle at.

“So, we have a good advantage in the championship, and now it’s time to risk a little bit.

“Of course, if we can close the second position in the championship as soon as possible, it will be better for us.

“We will enjoy Portimao and Valencia more. But we need to think that it’s not the last opportunity. So, I feel like risking, like I can put everything in. So, I will try my best.”