Jonathan Rea: "Changing bikes" helped Marc Marquez "but I can't compare myself"

Jonathan Rea says he “can’t compare” his current situation with Yamaha to the one of Marc Marquez at Honda before the Spanish MotoGP rider moved to Ducati.

In the opening half of the 2025 season, Rea has been linked with a switch to Ducati or Honda for 2026.

Talk inside the WorldSBK paddock before this weekend's round at Balaton Park has centred on discussions with Honda.

Moving to a Ducati-backed team would be a move comparable to the one Marc Marquez made in 2024 to revitalise his career after difficult years with Honda following his injury saga which began with the fracturing of his right humerus in 2020.

But Rea has said a comparison with Marquez’s situation from 2023, the Spaniard’s final year with Honda in MotoGP, is not something he can make.

“Marc [Marquez] had horrible years in Honda and changing bikes helped him a lot,” Jonathan Rea said in an interview with Italian publication Motosprint.

“But I can't compare myself to him.

“We'll see what the future has in store for me.”

Jonathan Rea names deadline to decide WorldSBK future

38-year-old Rea, who reinforced his commitment to returning to the front of World Superbike when speaking to Crash.net at Donington, told Motosprint that he expects his future to be decided after the Hungarian Round at Balaton Park on 25–27 July – after which is a six-week summer break.

“Fortunately or unfortunately for me my season started late, so while Bulega and Toprak [Razgatlioglu] have already defined their future, and some teams have already clarified their plans for 2026, I told myself that after Balaton it will be time to define my [future],” he said.

“I'm very open-minded at the moment, trying both to give my best in the single weekend and to explore the possible scenarios.

“After the Hungarian round, everything will have to be clearer.”

Rea shot down talk about Ducati when Crash.net asked him at Donington Park.

“I need to go out and do a really good job here, and at Balaton, and then worry about my future and what that looks like, and how I can see myself," he responded.

“But I’m not thinking about anything else right now other than trying to maximise my potential and the bike.”

Rea even hinted at unfulfilled potential with Yamaha.

“There is potential," he told us. "The potential is so much better than we’re showing.

“It’s just work and I can’t give up on myself. It’s just part and parcel, really.”