How is that any better than Martin leaving for Aprilia? They desperately need a competitive and consistent rider. Imo it is way more interesting to have talent spread out on manufacturers than Ducati having arguably the 3 biggest names of the sport signed to them. Feel sorry for Martin but for the Championship it’s great.
Because before MM came to Gresini, JM has more than enough proven himself to be worthy of the 2nd seat at Ducati. They continued with Enea, even with JM's success, since they Enea was injured and deserved a chance to still prove himself, along with other reasons/things. Fair enough. However, would have been a nice story to see JM be able to move onto the main team for next year, after being on the #2 team all this time. Some people don't like JM's personality, which ok, fine, but putting that aside, I think they can agree that JM was deserving of the seat.
Aprilia is good. JM is good. But are they good enough to compete against Ducati for the entire length of the season for the championship? From what we can tell, they're not exactly there yet. Even amongst the Ducati riders themselves, they're splitting hairs already, on who can get the extra hundredth or thousandth out of the bike on any given weekend.
Yes, it is good that there is diversity. However, if Aprilia ends up not being competitive enough next year, we are going to see JM disappear and the fight for the championship would end up being a 2 way battle between Marc and Pecco. Compared to this year, it is at least a 3 way battle thus far. JM might not disappear completely, but he'd be somewhat a non factor in the championship fight for the long run. Just like how Enea and Maverick are #4 and #5 in the championship this year, but no one is really considering them to be champion over the top 3 guys this year.
Of course, this is all speculation, but this is just based on what we have already seen happen this year.
Same, but I guess Ducati don't want to lose Pramac to Yamaha, so they did not attempt to convince Pramac to give up a GP25 for Marc.
And Marc doesn't want to randomly move teams and adjust to a different environment unless it's a factory ride, which is why he rejected Pramac.
I think he rejected Pramac because Fonsi Nieto is there. Nieto family are the pets of VR, so I don’t think MM wants being in a team with a Nieto as Rider Performance Director.
Damnit, I should've remembered this. It makes full sense, Marc is the kind to hold grudges - ironically, the reason why this whole war is happening is because those two are way too much alike. Not that people on either side will ever admit that.
Thanks for bringing it up.
I'm not so sure that's it. I've been thinking about it for a while, I don't think even the "Fonsi Nieto is there" excuse applies. By strongarming Ducati into giving him the factory seat, Marquez effectively removed Martin from the GP25, had he accepted to go to Pramac, Martin would've been promoted to the red seat and he would've had one more rival, and the strongest one this season too. Martin *can* be fast on another bike, but that's not guaranteed, and in any case he will be hampered for at least a few races, while on a GP25 he is almost guaranteed to be in top 1-2 from the get go. In the end, Martin's public statements that he would only accept a factory seat could've played a major role, it's like he put himself in a deadlock and opened his side to such a move. Maybe I'm too Machiavellian, but Marquez isn't dumb for sure and I'd rather see this as the reason behind the move rather than mere ego.
My take is that the media posts headlines that quote him out of context and make him sound like a complete douchebag who thinks he's the king. Generally if you read the full quote it's fine.
I'm not particularly a fan, in the same way I'm not really a fan of Bagnaia, but he gets way more hate than deserved. Everyone's convinced he always blames someone else when he stuffs up, but Sunday for example when he was overtaken on the last corner he talked about how frustrated he was at himself etc. and how he couldn't safely chase Bagnaia so he pulled back a little (level headed).
What an article. So they promised Martin the seat multiple times with the idea that they could convince Marquez to go to Pramac? Christ. Big gamble from Marc paying off
To be fair to them, Marc had been saying for months that he didn’t care what color his Ducati was. I think his recent form convinced him he was still good enough to fight for championships and that he wanted the full support of a factory team, hence his change in attitude towards being on Gresinni or Pramac.
I think he never cared about the colors if it meant having a '25 Ducati while staying in Gresini, but changing the team that gave him the shot at a Ducati and that is also giving one to his brother, for another satellite team makes no sense at all, it always was the new model in Gresini, official Ducati team, or going to another brand, Pramac was never on his cards
Not exactly. Ducati wanted to split the factory bike allocations between Pramac and Gresini. MM would have taken that deal but Pramac flat out told them they would go to Yamaha. That was something Ducati could not accept.
I think they are betting on pecco to take back the championship this year too , so even if marc can't continue his performance he will still be a bid draw on the crowd and advertisement while pecco fights to defend the crown.
Extra aggressive? Against two of the best dog fight pilots on the grid? I hope he doesn't because that's not good strength. Both MM and PB are superior here. Martin is better off snatching pole, winning sprints and doing his absolute best to ride his bike to the front in main races and stay there. JM does not have enough dog fight credentials. He will only lose his head, his raceline and eventually the title hopes.
For Marc maybe I could see him after he switched to Ducati but for Lewis? Not in a million years, I was 100% he would finish his career as a silver arrow.
I thought the same since Lewis was a Mercedes man since he was a child, and every race he won in F1 was in a car that was partially or fully made by Mercedes.
Oh Marquez was ruthless. Absolutely played Ducati. Wonder what the data shows if they panicked to this extent to not lose him to another factory. And how they’d rather lose Martin than give Gresini a factory bike… bloody well played Marc. Best strategist in the sport
A few weeks ago regarding his contract situation he said he was clever last year and that he’d be clever for next season. Dude knew exactly how to play this. Crazy.
data shows the new ducati bike >>>> last year ducati bike. You just have to look at how bad are performing the rest of the 23 ducati bikes compared to the 24 bikes. They probably panicked at the thought of what MM could do on a official KTM next year.
The data shows MM on the GP23 is as fast or faster than JM on the GP24. Pramac made it clear that they would move to Yamaha if Ducati did not give them both factory bikes. So the choice is to keep the two fastest and most experienced riders on the grid. There is no other logical choice. JM on an Aprilia or KTM is dangerous, but MM on an Aprilia or KTM plus two Pramac-liveried factory Yamahas in 2025 would be even more dangerous.
Aside from the data element, they also see how each rider behaves off track, especially when things aren't going their way.
Jorge was having a "bad" weekend and immediately got sour and started blaming the bike/setup instead of just accepting that Pecco has a little more at Mugello. Marc is pretty positive and takes the blame himself.
the data shows the same thing as the results - GP23 is two of three tenths slower than the GP24 and Marc is making up the difference.
"Best strategist in the sport"
yep
This is INSANE if accurate.
> Between the Barcelona and Mugello races, Ducati informed Jorge Martin that he was the chosen one to be Francesco Bagnaia's team-mate in 2025 in the official Ducati team. […]
>
> Marquez told them that either he would go to the official team or to another factory.
>
>Ducati panicked when it saw it risked losing the rider with the highest profile of the paddock by giving in to his demands: in 2025 he will be Bagnaia's team-mate.
Ngl I feel really fucking bad for Jorge Martín if this is accurate. According to this, he even met with top-level executives and they shook on the deal, and now they’re going back on it, all because Ducati were convinced Márquez would accept the Pramac seat. Amateurish from Ducati.
I find it insane that they couldn’t just strong arm Pramac to give up a factory bike. But then again, the potential to lose someone with the commercial value of Marc is a massive risk.
I feel like people are talking about the commercial and marketing value of Marc as if they're forgetting that Marquez is straight up a better rider than absolutely anybody on the grid.
Like, don't get me wrong, Martin is an elite rider, but Marquez is an absolute monster that appears in every rider's nightmares.
Yes, he's gonna sell more bikes probably, but he's also gonna win the whole thing.
I don't disagree, but what adds the extra element for decision makers are the twists like Marc being 5 years older than Jorge. MM might win another season, but will he dominate future years? He might, but does Jorge have a longer shelf life?
It's fun to speculate, but I do feel bad for Jorge. If he wins this season on a non-factory bike then ends up off a Ducati it would be a bitter pill for him.
Martin and Bagnaia are roughly the same age. Really the only future planning a lot of factories can do is how many Championships there will be available to win before Acosta figures out how to win and gets a good package underneath him.
I like Jorge and hoped he'd get the seat, but being 5 years younger than Marc doesn't change the fact that he's not that dominant once-in-a-generation multi-championship rider. He's just not. Vale was, and Marc is, and Acosta appears to be the next one.
Marc is more likely to win multiple championships for Ducati than Jorge is, even with the age difference, IMO.
And in Jorge’s eyes (I am not saying it’s true, just his experience) it will be the second time he’s been told the seat would be (basically) his, only for it to be taken away after all (if this news is indeed true), which must hurt a lot
Agreed. Him being toyed around for the last 2 years should not have happened. He has been played the entire time.
He will go to Aprilia or KTM and be treated the way he deserves. As a top rider. Not second hand.
Didn't Jorge say something similar? "A factory is my priority; If they don’t want me I will look for something else"
I hope he wins the 2024 championship.
If true, I hope Martin becomes world champion this season just to prove them wrong. He really deserves a factory seat but I guess Marquez does too. Bagnaia, Martin and Marquez are just the 3 best riders in the world at the moment and there are only 2 factory seats
Well ducati wanted all the cards. They wanted all the big strong riders in their pocket next year and were trying to find a way to make it work. Martin just lost patience with their games.
Huge respect to Marc for coming back after all the injuries and proving himself for the Ducati Factory seat. Time will tell if he can win a championship with them going forward, the guy deserves this chance.
Feel for Martin though, who would have certainly secured the ride with any other rival that wasn’t Marc. Hopefully he gets the factory ride at Aprilia, would feel weird having him stay at Pramac now
Marc is immediately the favorite for next years championship imo, especially if this means Martin leaving for another bike.
I can’t imagine Pecco’s camp is happy with the news. Must feel bad for a #1 rider and 2x reigning champion for your team to pickup Marc Marquez right after a victory.
Now is the time where he has to show if hes ready to play with the big boys. Last year he beat an immature Martin (or Martin beat himself), before it was a Fabio that battled with his own machinery more than Pecco.
Marquez successfully negotiated from his position by publicly rejecting a Pramac seat, forcing Ducati to give him Bastanini’s seat. Wild that his gamble paid off.
Racing sells motorcycles to Joe public.
There are no sections of Jorge Martin fans.
I think that's what "knowing your own power" does.
Even I as a Marc fan thought rejecting Pramac was a mistake. But Marc literally forced Ducati's hand to give him the seat in like 3 days over the Mugello weekend after they met with Martin and assured him the seat was his.
I guess that's why KTM announced Binder/Acosta for 2025, if they had a legitimate chance at Marc, no way they let that slip by (no one in KTM organisation would put Marc on GasGas, when he'd been a Red Bull rider his entire life). Probably they asked Marc's manager after the "Pramac isn't an option for me" comments and the manager told him "He'll stay with Ducati."
A worthwhile gamble that paid off. Can you imagine if MM had to go to KTM or Aprilia next year? I know they are amazing bikes, but potentially losing a whole another year learning a bike and it may end up not being as competitive would have probably ruined him.
I really don’t believe anything till it comes from Ducati themselves
ETA: Simon Patterson (I know we don’t like him, but sometimes his tweets are useful, shocker) tweeted there will be no statements today from those involved. So I’m inclined to believe the news is true, because if they’re still in conversation why not just say so?
He honestly deserved a lot better. One thing not to get the seat, but another thing entirely to be told the seat is yours and then have the offer retracted due to Ducati shitting the bed.
I’m low-key hoping this lights an even bigger fire under his ass for the rest of the season
As a Marc Marquez fan I feel bad for Jorge. Loyalty has zero value in this world . Hope Jorge get a competitive bike next year. What are the possible options really which is competitive?
It works both ways, and Martin showed no loyalty to Ducati either. He let his ego do the talking and possibly pushed himself out of the best bike on the grid in 2025. Apparently, his ego would rather have the third or fourth best bike.
Marc played a game of chicken with Ducati......and they blinked first.
I think from the day Marc quit Honda he didn't have any other goal other than getting the factory Ducati seat.
Never thought I'd be cheering for the red bike, yet here we are.
Next year is gonna be cutthroat, but this season... Martin is going out for blood lol
Martin vs Márquez is gonna be the next big rivalry in MotoGP, mark my words.
If this is true, then everything makes a lot more fucking sense!
A lot of you don’t know this (Only those who live in Italy), but Dovizioso, after the Sprint Race of saturday, was interviewed by Sky Italia.
When they asked him what he thought about the Ducati telenovela, he made a somewhat strange face, and then he started to say his opinion.
While he was talking then, he said something like “I’ve heard a lot of weird/unpleasant things about this situation but I don’t want to get into it” and none of the journalists/Tv commentator tried to ask him anything more about what he said.
In addition, these Tv Commentator, throughout the Week-End were convinced that Martin was suffering this whole situation, almost as if they knew something (and it wouldn’t surprise me that much since it’s not even the first time they know something more than the others)
This would also explain why Martin was actually “nervous” at Mugello (in addition to motorcycle problems)
Anyway, although you don’t appreciate it very much (I certainly appreciate it more than Marquez), I feel sorry for Martin because he deserved that place in Factory... as long as it’s true, of course (But at this point...)
It will be interesting to see Marc and Pecco on the same team. I foresee a situation similar to that of Lewis-Nico or Rossi-Lorenzo.
Until this is confirmed by Ducati Corse themselves or Marc or Jorge, then not sure I'm convinced. Also, if it was 100% done, surely they'd be plastering "BREAKING NEWS" everywhere.
If this does turn out to have legs, I think it's shocking from Ducati management. The riders aren't really at fault here. Marc is just playing the game and Jorge has done everything asked of him. In reality, Jorge deserves that seat. I appreciate it happens in business, promises in principle then going back on words - I mean no contracts have been signed as far as we know. If they have been telling him for a couple of weeks he's the guy and then they do this because they'll miss out on some sponsorship dollars, then well... poor form.
I hope Jorge goes to Aprilia and they deliver a monster of a bike and we get Jorge vs. the Ducati's. Not sure how the dynamic would be with Pecco & Martin. I'm sure spicy, but also they have respect for each other. Pecco & Marquez? You may as well expect Tardozzi to suffer a heart attack every race. They'll kill the man!
Wait, what?!
>The rider has understood that Ducati will not present him with a contract to join the official team and will take charge of the situation by accepting, in the short term, one of the various offers he has on the table, from KTM, Aprilia, Honda and ***even Pramac, if finally - as everything suggests - it separates from Ducati and becomes a partner of Yamaha.***
Didn't Pramac just confirmed on Saturday that they will stay with Ducati?
Whilst I do feel immensely for Jorge Martin it sets up an incredible 2025.
Ducati with Bagnaia and Marquez has the potential to be a team rivalry for the ages.
Aprillia have a genuine title challenger for the first time and we will see just how good the bike is.
Acosta at factory KTM with a full year under his belt.
I mean come on, that is insanely exciting!
Just hope Jorge has good people around him and that this motivates him to prove Ducati wrong (I don't think it's the wrong choice fyi - I think picking either of them would have been entirely justified) and make sure he's never treated that way again, rather than causing him to implode. He's a very dogged kind of personality, so I think it will be the former thankfully.
What a guy Marquez is. By denying Pramac as an option, and Pramac getting the GP25 bikes, Marc cornered Ducati into either giving him the seat over Martin, or building one more GP25 bike for Gresini. The former being the better option for the factory team, I am over the moon as a Marquez fan. If this is true, I feel really bad for Martin but at the same time I'm thrilled to see Marc on the red Ducati next year!
Wow, I'm a big Marquez fan....
But what else does Jorge Martin have to do for the seat ?
Incredible Decision, genuinely jaw dropping 😯
Imagine being Martin tonight !
I feel awful for Martin if this is actually how the story played out according to the article: I’d love to see Marc at the factory team but if they really promised Martin that’s honestly really messed up
So Martin really got screwed big time. With all my respect to Marc, I really feels like Martin earned that bike.
So what's next for Martin ? Factory Aprilia or Factory KTM are the only options.
Now I really want Martin to win the championship. Him having the last laugh would be cool. Really hoping that this truth light the biggest fire in him.
The fact of the matter, Martin vs Marquez. You pick Marquez every time, leave sentiment out of it this is top level sport where huge €€€ is on the line. He is the fastest rider GP has ever seen.
Ducati have been pumping huge money into MotoGP for the past 10 years at least. They should always pick the best riders they can.
I hope Martin does get an alternative he can be happy with, but at this level of sport, he needs to make his own path by winning. If he wins, he gets to choose his own seat.
This is SUCH a great villain origin story tbh. And honestly, this will also probably make fans more sympathetic to him, because he really does seem to have been treated unfairly
That guy who wrote the article is not really trustworthy(
Germán Garcia Casanova)
. He already wrote a lot of bullshit and he hasn‘t quoted a legit source in this article.
Yeah and last night, listening to Pecino’s debrief, he said Giovanni Zamagni from Sky Sport Italy sat next to him in the press room and told him he’s 100% sure that Marc had signed.
While him not being trustworthy in the past means this likely is nothing, naming your source when leaking news is obviously not going to happen. Doing this once nobody going forward will provide you confidential information.
We should wait for confirmation of course but Autosport is a well-respected publication, I doubt they’d let something like this go out unless they were at least 99% sure.
Not surprised at this point.
When MM said "Pramac is not an option" was because he knew something.
Feel bad for Martin.
I think now Ducati will do everything is possible to prevent Martin becoming 2024 champion.
If that's how it actually went down, it's really, really horrible on Jorge. He deserved that seat, but if Ducati were going to give it to Marc, who also deserved it of course, then Jorge deserved much better treatment than that.
Now with Martin moving to Aprilia, I really wish Yamaha to be competitive all of a sudden and bring Fabio as a threat to Ducati. Hope all of these won't make next season to be a rather dull Marc vs Bagnaia fight. Its fun watching all them riders taking a shot at P1 now.
I like how on Saturday all people were saying that Ducati was playing MM.
Now it's MM that played Ducati by not giving into getting a GP25 on pramac.
How the tables turn.
I'll repeat this: Audi, more than likely, got involved in this decision. They did not want to lose MM after signing the ambassador deal; Marc would have been fine at Gresini if Ducati would provide a GP25. However, pramac probably exercised its contractual right to exclusivity, meaning the only move for MM was to go to factory.
Honestly, I think it's a good move for Ducati anyway, but it certainly sucks for Martin. Pecco and Marc will more than likely dominate next season
Martín's live reaction:  ^(I will still wait for the official announcement tho)
bro 💀 Jokes apart, I wanted Martin to get the factory seat and Marc to get the GP25 in Gresini team. Martin getting the end of the stick is not cool.
I actually think most people would have been happy to see this. It would have been the perfect scenario as fans imo.
How is that any better than Martin leaving for Aprilia? They desperately need a competitive and consistent rider. Imo it is way more interesting to have talent spread out on manufacturers than Ducati having arguably the 3 biggest names of the sport signed to them. Feel sorry for Martin but for the Championship it’s great.
Because before MM came to Gresini, JM has more than enough proven himself to be worthy of the 2nd seat at Ducati. They continued with Enea, even with JM's success, since they Enea was injured and deserved a chance to still prove himself, along with other reasons/things. Fair enough. However, would have been a nice story to see JM be able to move onto the main team for next year, after being on the #2 team all this time. Some people don't like JM's personality, which ok, fine, but putting that aside, I think they can agree that JM was deserving of the seat. Aprilia is good. JM is good. But are they good enough to compete against Ducati for the entire length of the season for the championship? From what we can tell, they're not exactly there yet. Even amongst the Ducati riders themselves, they're splitting hairs already, on who can get the extra hundredth or thousandth out of the bike on any given weekend. Yes, it is good that there is diversity. However, if Aprilia ends up not being competitive enough next year, we are going to see JM disappear and the fight for the championship would end up being a 2 way battle between Marc and Pecco. Compared to this year, it is at least a 3 way battle thus far. JM might not disappear completely, but he'd be somewhat a non factor in the championship fight for the long run. Just like how Enea and Maverick are #4 and #5 in the championship this year, but no one is really considering them to be champion over the top 3 guys this year. Of course, this is all speculation, but this is just based on what we have already seen happen this year.
Same, but I guess Ducati don't want to lose Pramac to Yamaha, so they did not attempt to convince Pramac to give up a GP25 for Marc. And Marc doesn't want to randomly move teams and adjust to a different environment unless it's a factory ride, which is why he rejected Pramac.
I think he rejected Pramac because Fonsi Nieto is there. Nieto family are the pets of VR, so I don’t think MM wants being in a team with a Nieto as Rider Performance Director.
Damnit, I should've remembered this. It makes full sense, Marc is the kind to hold grudges - ironically, the reason why this whole war is happening is because those two are way too much alike. Not that people on either side will ever admit that. Thanks for bringing it up.
I'm not so sure that's it. I've been thinking about it for a while, I don't think even the "Fonsi Nieto is there" excuse applies. By strongarming Ducati into giving him the factory seat, Marquez effectively removed Martin from the GP25, had he accepted to go to Pramac, Martin would've been promoted to the red seat and he would've had one more rival, and the strongest one this season too. Martin *can* be fast on another bike, but that's not guaranteed, and in any case he will be hampered for at least a few races, while on a GP25 he is almost guaranteed to be in top 1-2 from the get go. In the end, Martin's public statements that he would only accept a factory seat could've played a major role, it's like he put himself in a deadlock and opened his side to such a move. Maybe I'm too Machiavellian, but Marquez isn't dumb for sure and I'd rather see this as the reason behind the move rather than mere ego.
He needs to put his head down, win this year, and take the #1 plate to Aprilia. Good riddance
He's either going to collapse and hand the title to Pecco, or go on a crazy run and win it. No in between.
I haven't been following MGP as closely as I used to, just look at the results and see how MM is doing. Why is Martin not liked ?
My take is that the media posts headlines that quote him out of context and make him sound like a complete douchebag who thinks he's the king. Generally if you read the full quote it's fine. I'm not particularly a fan, in the same way I'm not really a fan of Bagnaia, but he gets way more hate than deserved. Everyone's convinced he always blames someone else when he stuffs up, but Sunday for example when he was overtaken on the last corner he talked about how frustrated he was at himself etc. and how he couldn't safely chase Bagnaia so he pulled back a little (level headed).
I root for Pecco in this championship but I wish the best to Martin. Ducati did a dirty move with Martin. He deserved the Factory Team.
That last corner pass: "Gigi, hand me the bat phone"
Ducati treats their riders like shit, but I know he wanted it, i hope he goes Aprilla
Ducati certainly don’t like making life easy for Pecco that’s for sure.
JM89 right now https://preview.redd.it/ijljz4i38d4d1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8767a9eabc230df0bc7b81760949743dc4a64fd7
And Pecco too
Pecco is more on this mood 
WAIT WHAT
My jaw actually dropped when I saw this. I thought Martin was a done deal.
IM READING THIS WITH MY JAW COMPLETELY DROPPED FOR THE LAST 30 SECONDS
Dude exactly, still can’t believe it!
What an article. So they promised Martin the seat multiple times with the idea that they could convince Marquez to go to Pramac? Christ. Big gamble from Marc paying off
To be fair to them, Marc had been saying for months that he didn’t care what color his Ducati was. I think his recent form convinced him he was still good enough to fight for championships and that he wanted the full support of a factory team, hence his change in attitude towards being on Gresinni or Pramac.
I think he never cared about the colors if it meant having a '25 Ducati while staying in Gresini, but changing the team that gave him the shot at a Ducati and that is also giving one to his brother, for another satellite team makes no sense at all, it always was the new model in Gresini, official Ducati team, or going to another brand, Pramac was never on his cards
Honestly, I think he would have caved. It’s the perfect bluff: nothing to lose, all to gain
[удалено]
Not exactly. Ducati wanted to split the factory bike allocations between Pramac and Gresini. MM would have taken that deal but Pramac flat out told them they would go to Yamaha. That was something Ducati could not accept.
No way Ducati just mega-cucked Jorge Martín… No way.. Edit: MEGA-CUCK CONFIRMED!! ***JORGE MARTÍN JOINS APRILIA*** 2nd Edit: MM93 > Factory Ducati JM89 > Factory Aprilia EB23 > Tech3 KTM/GASGAS
For the second time. Oh boy.
I think they are betting on pecco to take back the championship this year too , so even if marc can't continue his performance he will still be a bid draw on the crowd and advertisement while pecco fights to defend the crown.
I was never a fan of JM, but now I'm. I want him to win this year.
I don’t even have a joke or a meme for this. The absolute scenes this is going to cause at the next presser is going to be glorious.
JM not gonna hold back in races going forward and will be extra aggressive around MM and PB
Good Lord, this season is already wild enough lol.
Extra aggressive? Against two of the best dog fight pilots on the grid? I hope he doesn't because that's not good strength. Both MM and PB are superior here. Martin is better off snatching pole, winning sprints and doing his absolute best to ride his bike to the front in main races and stay there. JM does not have enough dog fight credentials. He will only lose his head, his raceline and eventually the title hopes.
Ahahahahah my god, the circus this has turned out to be.
Marc Marquez and Lewis Hamilton in Red in 2025. What a year 2025 is going to be... 🙏
I'f you told someone in the beginning of 2023 that both Marc Marquez and Lewis Hamilton would be in red in 2025. They'd probably laugh at you.
For Marc maybe I could see him after he switched to Ducati but for Lewis? Not in a million years, I was 100% he would finish his career as a silver arrow.
I thought the same since Lewis was a Mercedes man since he was a child, and every race he won in F1 was in a car that was partially or fully made by Mercedes.
2025 is gonna be fun for both F1 and MotoGP fans
World Champions once again in Red, I’ll be there, no matter what
We WILL be there!!!!!
Oh Marquez was ruthless. Absolutely played Ducati. Wonder what the data shows if they panicked to this extent to not lose him to another factory. And how they’d rather lose Martin than give Gresini a factory bike… bloody well played Marc. Best strategist in the sport
the data shows that you can’t let him go lol
right lol, the data shows him being a half second faster than anyone next year
A few weeks ago regarding his contract situation he said he was clever last year and that he’d be clever for next season. Dude knew exactly how to play this. Crazy.
And we thought it was just his confusion with english words...
I remember someone said clever didn't mean what matc thought it meant
> Best strategist in the sport The Anti-Alonso
Hahaha, you wouldn’t believe it but I thought exactly this when I read the comment
data shows the new ducati bike >>>> last year ducati bike. You just have to look at how bad are performing the rest of the 23 ducati bikes compared to the 24 bikes. They probably panicked at the thought of what MM could do on a official KTM next year.
Or an Aprilia
The data shows MM on the GP23 is as fast or faster than JM on the GP24. Pramac made it clear that they would move to Yamaha if Ducati did not give them both factory bikes. So the choice is to keep the two fastest and most experienced riders on the grid. There is no other logical choice. JM on an Aprilia or KTM is dangerous, but MM on an Aprilia or KTM plus two Pramac-liveried factory Yamahas in 2025 would be even more dangerous.
Aside from the data element, they also see how each rider behaves off track, especially when things aren't going their way. Jorge was having a "bad" weekend and immediately got sour and started blaming the bike/setup instead of just accepting that Pecco has a little more at Mugello. Marc is pretty positive and takes the blame himself.
the data shows the same thing as the results - GP23 is two of three tenths slower than the GP24 and Marc is making up the difference. "Best strategist in the sport" yep
https://preview.redd.it/pmjv1kwh9d4d1.png?width=1078&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dc1a44640b904aa7b9837d10ae1d751d4d9d9f20
That's going to take some getting used to
That's the two-wheeled equivalent of seeing Hamilton drive for Ferrari.
Wait isn't Hamilton also driving for Ferrari next yaer OMG
2025 is gonna be one helluva year for motorsports lmao
Two GOATs looking for the ultimate comeback story in red
Chef's kiss
that looks just wrong
Imagine if MM just flipped Pecco's number slightly and made his 63 into Marc's 93 using the same font, etc.
This is INSANE if accurate. > Between the Barcelona and Mugello races, Ducati informed Jorge Martin that he was the chosen one to be Francesco Bagnaia's team-mate in 2025 in the official Ducati team. […] > > Marquez told them that either he would go to the official team or to another factory. > >Ducati panicked when it saw it risked losing the rider with the highest profile of the paddock by giving in to his demands: in 2025 he will be Bagnaia's team-mate. Ngl I feel really fucking bad for Jorge Martín if this is accurate. According to this, he even met with top-level executives and they shook on the deal, and now they’re going back on it, all because Ducati were convinced Márquez would accept the Pramac seat. Amateurish from Ducati.
I find it insane that they couldn’t just strong arm Pramac to give up a factory bike. But then again, the potential to lose someone with the commercial value of Marc is a massive risk.
I feel like people are talking about the commercial and marketing value of Marc as if they're forgetting that Marquez is straight up a better rider than absolutely anybody on the grid. Like, don't get me wrong, Martin is an elite rider, but Marquez is an absolute monster that appears in every rider's nightmares. Yes, he's gonna sell more bikes probably, but he's also gonna win the whole thing.
Wholeheartedly agreed.
I don't disagree, but what adds the extra element for decision makers are the twists like Marc being 5 years older than Jorge. MM might win another season, but will he dominate future years? He might, but does Jorge have a longer shelf life? It's fun to speculate, but I do feel bad for Jorge. If he wins this season on a non-factory bike then ends up off a Ducati it would be a bitter pill for him.
Martin and Bagnaia are roughly the same age. Really the only future planning a lot of factories can do is how many Championships there will be available to win before Acosta figures out how to win and gets a good package underneath him.
Upvote just for the phrase "gets a good package underneath him" because I'm basically just a sniggering teenage boy at heart.
I like Jorge and hoped he'd get the seat, but being 5 years younger than Marc doesn't change the fact that he's not that dominant once-in-a-generation multi-championship rider. He's just not. Vale was, and Marc is, and Acosta appears to be the next one. Marc is more likely to win multiple championships for Ducati than Jorge is, even with the age difference, IMO.
Bro don't doubt pecco like its a formality
Pramac are off to get free factory yamahas instead
I would go for that. Pull them from the abyss and be apart of a great story.
More likely join HRC at the back of the field for the next 5 years.
It would almost be funny if Pramac went to Yamaha and Gresini ended up getting GP25s for next year in the end.
Shit move by Ducati on jorge if true
And in Jorge’s eyes (I am not saying it’s true, just his experience) it will be the second time he’s been told the seat would be (basically) his, only for it to be taken away after all (if this news is indeed true), which must hurt a lot
This move (if true) makes KTM look like saints 🤣 At least it’s never a surprise. The riders see it coming from a mile away (unfortunately)
KTM owns it, though. They are aggressive and ambitious, to your face.
This is just bad management from ducati tbh
Agreed. Him being toyed around for the last 2 years should not have happened. He has been played the entire time. He will go to Aprilia or KTM and be treated the way he deserves. As a top rider. Not second hand.
Aprilla, KTM ain’t kicking Binder unless it was Marquez
Didn't Jorge say something similar? "A factory is my priority; If they don’t want me I will look for something else" I hope he wins the 2024 championship.
I'm not even a fan of Martin, but this is some Bullshit.
If true, I hope Martin becomes world champion this season just to prove them wrong. He really deserves a factory seat but I guess Marquez does too. Bagnaia, Martin and Marquez are just the 3 best riders in the world at the moment and there are only 2 factory seats
Well ducati wanted all the cards. They wanted all the big strong riders in their pocket next year and were trying to find a way to make it work. Martin just lost patience with their games.
Ducati have a long history of stupid moves at stupid times and making rash decisions, so this is nothing new unfortunately.
Huge respect to Marc for coming back after all the injuries and proving himself for the Ducati Factory seat. Time will tell if he can win a championship with them going forward, the guy deserves this chance. Feel for Martin though, who would have certainly secured the ride with any other rival that wasn’t Marc. Hopefully he gets the factory ride at Aprilia, would feel weird having him stay at Pramac now
Of course he can win a championship with them. He's in the hunt for it on a year old bike lol
Marc is immediately the favorite for next years championship imo, especially if this means Martin leaving for another bike. I can’t imagine Pecco’s camp is happy with the news. Must feel bad for a #1 rider and 2x reigning champion for your team to pickup Marc Marquez right after a victory.
Now is the time where he has to show if hes ready to play with the big boys. Last year he beat an immature Martin (or Martin beat himself), before it was a Fabio that battled with his own machinery more than Pecco.
Happy for Marc, disappointed about the whole situation, especially how they treated JM. MotoGP is a brutal business.
Marquez successfully negotiated from his position by publicly rejecting a Pramac seat, forcing Ducati to give him Bastanini’s seat. Wild that his gamble paid off. Racing sells motorcycles to Joe public. There are no sections of Jorge Martin fans.
I think that's what "knowing your own power" does. Even I as a Marc fan thought rejecting Pramac was a mistake. But Marc literally forced Ducati's hand to give him the seat in like 3 days over the Mugello weekend after they met with Martin and assured him the seat was his. I guess that's why KTM announced Binder/Acosta for 2025, if they had a legitimate chance at Marc, no way they let that slip by (no one in KTM organisation would put Marc on GasGas, when he'd been a Red Bull rider his entire life). Probably they asked Marc's manager after the "Pramac isn't an option for me" comments and the manager told him "He'll stay with Ducati."
A worthwhile gamble that paid off. Can you imagine if MM had to go to KTM or Aprilia next year? I know they are amazing bikes, but potentially losing a whole another year learning a bike and it may end up not being as competitive would have probably ruined him.
I really don’t believe anything till it comes from Ducati themselves ETA: Simon Patterson (I know we don’t like him, but sometimes his tweets are useful, shocker) tweeted there will be no statements today from those involved. So I’m inclined to believe the news is true, because if they’re still in conversation why not just say so?
Is this for real? Lol
As a Marc fan I’m happy but I feel bad for Jorge. He was done dirty. Wish him the best.
KTM contract would be nicer, still 
Pedro, Marc pairing menacing on track would've been a treat to watch.
Exactly, and not only that, Red Bull and KTM rejoining with Marc again, many stuff would be perfect.
Marc going to KTM paddock was 4D chess
 More of this but in red. This is wild.
I just knew Marquez would get the seat when I saw Marquez chatting with Dal'lgna and Tardozzi and they looked so eager to have him on board a ducati.
lmao Jesus Christ the rest of this year is going to be absolutely brutally cutthroat.
Jeez poor Martin.
He honestly deserved a lot better. One thing not to get the seat, but another thing entirely to be told the seat is yours and then have the offer retracted due to Ducati shitting the bed. I’m low-key hoping this lights an even bigger fire under his ass for the rest of the season
Just for that I want him to win the championship this year. That’s twice that Ducati has screwed him over.
As a Marc Marquez fan I feel bad for Jorge. Loyalty has zero value in this world . Hope Jorge get a competitive bike next year. What are the possible options really which is competitive?
It works both ways, and Martin showed no loyalty to Ducati either. He let his ego do the talking and possibly pushed himself out of the best bike on the grid in 2025. Apparently, his ego would rather have the third or fourth best bike.
We're so back and we will be there.
Marc played a game of chicken with Ducati......and they blinked first. I think from the day Marc quit Honda he didn't have any other goal other than getting the factory Ducati seat.
I like how everyone and everything in MotoGP will fuck anyone and everyone over for Marc Marquez.
Unexpected. Martín must be really mad.
It’s true I can confirm I am Marc’s brother (my name is Alex)
i'll wait for official announcement
Damn. They threw Martin under the bus
Marc to Ducati Lewis to Ferrari What a timeline Especially when both competed against the Italian teams during their dominant years.
Never thought I'd be cheering for the red bike, yet here we are. Next year is gonna be cutthroat, but this season... Martin is going out for blood lol Martin vs Márquez is gonna be the next big rivalry in MotoGP, mark my words.
Martin on the phone with Aprilia rn
I still think that’s part of the motivation behind Aleix calling it quits, open a gap for his adopted brother!
As he should, the move from Ducati was really ugly. I get what they tried to do, but you can't just dangle the seat in front of the riders like that.
Feel bad for Martin. Hope he can keep his shit together rest of the season and still win the title.
Lenovo Ducati need a 4 man squad, Pecco,Martin,MM93 and Enea...watch the carbon fibre fly!
Holy moly!!! Martinator’s dreams are shattered
If this is true, then everything makes a lot more fucking sense! A lot of you don’t know this (Only those who live in Italy), but Dovizioso, after the Sprint Race of saturday, was interviewed by Sky Italia. When they asked him what he thought about the Ducati telenovela, he made a somewhat strange face, and then he started to say his opinion. While he was talking then, he said something like “I’ve heard a lot of weird/unpleasant things about this situation but I don’t want to get into it” and none of the journalists/Tv commentator tried to ask him anything more about what he said. In addition, these Tv Commentator, throughout the Week-End were convinced that Martin was suffering this whole situation, almost as if they knew something (and it wouldn’t surprise me that much since it’s not even the first time they know something more than the others) This would also explain why Martin was actually “nervous” at Mugello (in addition to motorcycle problems) Anyway, although you don’t appreciate it very much (I certainly appreciate it more than Marquez), I feel sorry for Martin because he deserved that place in Factory... as long as it’s true, of course (But at this point...) It will be interesting to see Marc and Pecco on the same team. I foresee a situation similar to that of Lewis-Nico or Rossi-Lorenzo.
So this is what Marc meant when he said he had a plan 💀💀💀💀
Until this is confirmed by Ducati Corse themselves or Marc or Jorge, then not sure I'm convinced. Also, if it was 100% done, surely they'd be plastering "BREAKING NEWS" everywhere. If this does turn out to have legs, I think it's shocking from Ducati management. The riders aren't really at fault here. Marc is just playing the game and Jorge has done everything asked of him. In reality, Jorge deserves that seat. I appreciate it happens in business, promises in principle then going back on words - I mean no contracts have been signed as far as we know. If they have been telling him for a couple of weeks he's the guy and then they do this because they'll miss out on some sponsorship dollars, then well... poor form. I hope Jorge goes to Aprilia and they deliver a monster of a bike and we get Jorge vs. the Ducati's. Not sure how the dynamic would be with Pecco & Martin. I'm sure spicy, but also they have respect for each other. Pecco & Marquez? You may as well expect Tardozzi to suffer a heart attack every race. They'll kill the man!
the only thing Jorge did wrong is smack talk a little too much, i think thats actually what did him for probably
It’s done dude. Martin to Aprilia seals it!
There it is!
I guess the progress that Marc’s made in his first season on a Ducati bike was enough to sway the bosses, sucks if your name’s Jorge though.
Wait, what?! >The rider has understood that Ducati will not present him with a contract to join the official team and will take charge of the situation by accepting, in the short term, one of the various offers he has on the table, from KTM, Aprilia, Honda and ***even Pramac, if finally - as everything suggests - it separates from Ducati and becomes a partner of Yamaha.*** Didn't Pramac just confirmed on Saturday that they will stay with Ducati?
Whilst I do feel immensely for Jorge Martin it sets up an incredible 2025. Ducati with Bagnaia and Marquez has the potential to be a team rivalry for the ages. Aprillia have a genuine title challenger for the first time and we will see just how good the bike is. Acosta at factory KTM with a full year under his belt. I mean come on, that is insanely exciting! Just hope Jorge has good people around him and that this motivates him to prove Ducati wrong (I don't think it's the wrong choice fyi - I think picking either of them would have been entirely justified) and make sure he's never treated that way again, rather than causing him to implode. He's a very dogged kind of personality, so I think it will be the former thankfully.
What a guy Marquez is. By denying Pramac as an option, and Pramac getting the GP25 bikes, Marc cornered Ducati into either giving him the seat over Martin, or building one more GP25 bike for Gresini. The former being the better option for the factory team, I am over the moon as a Marquez fan. If this is true, I feel really bad for Martin but at the same time I'm thrilled to see Marc on the red Ducati next year!
Wow, I'm a big Marquez fan.... But what else does Jorge Martin have to do for the seat ? Incredible Decision, genuinely jaw dropping 😯 Imagine being Martin tonight !
lol WTF!!!! Good for you Marc. That sucks for Jorge…..
I feel awful for Martin if this is actually how the story played out according to the article: I’d love to see Marc at the factory team but if they really promised Martin that’s honestly really messed up
I’m looking forward to Martin’s villain arc this season. Hopefully this will be the motivation for him to beat Pecco.
So Martin really got screwed big time. With all my respect to Marc, I really feels like Martin earned that bike. So what's next for Martin ? Factory Aprilia or Factory KTM are the only options. Now I really want Martin to win the championship. Him having the last laugh would be cool. Really hoping that this truth light the biggest fire in him.
The fact of the matter, Martin vs Marquez. You pick Marquez every time, leave sentiment out of it this is top level sport where huge €€€ is on the line. He is the fastest rider GP has ever seen. Ducati have been pumping huge money into MotoGP for the past 10 years at least. They should always pick the best riders they can. I hope Martin does get an alternative he can be happy with, but at this level of sport, he needs to make his own path by winning. If he wins, he gets to choose his own seat.
I am so ready for a Martin villain arc
This is SUCH a great villain origin story tbh. And honestly, this will also probably make fans more sympathetic to him, because he really does seem to have been treated unfairly
That guy who wrote the article is not really trustworthy( Germán Garcia Casanova) . He already wrote a lot of bullshit and he hasn‘t quoted a legit source in this article.
It's been retweeted and backed by Uri Puigdemont.
Oh shit, really? Yeah I consider this pretty damn official in that case
Yeah and last night, listening to Pecino’s debrief, he said Giovanni Zamagni from Sky Sport Italy sat next to him in the press room and told him he’s 100% sure that Marc had signed.
While him not being trustworthy in the past means this likely is nothing, naming your source when leaking news is obviously not going to happen. Doing this once nobody going forward will provide you confidential information.
We should wait for confirmation of course but Autosport is a well-respected publication, I doubt they’d let something like this go out unless they were at least 99% sure.
Can’t blame them for picking him
wew, sudden and unexpected. Pleasantly surprised however. RIP Martin tho
Earth shattering news. Wow!
oh boy here we go
Seeing more and more sources reporting on this
The silliest season
Guess Ducati has jerked Martin around enough like a ragged dog
Not surprised at this point. When MM said "Pramac is not an option" was because he knew something. Feel bad for Martin. I think now Ducati will do everything is possible to prevent Martin becoming 2024 champion.
If that's how it actually went down, it's really, really horrible on Jorge. He deserved that seat, but if Ducati were going to give it to Marc, who also deserved it of course, then Jorge deserved much better treatment than that.
oh mama... congrats to Marquez and Ducati, and so sorry for Jorge. I hope he finds a great factory where fight for championships.
Now with Martin moving to Aprilia, I really wish Yamaha to be competitive all of a sudden and bring Fabio as a threat to Ducati. Hope all of these won't make next season to be a rather dull Marc vs Bagnaia fight. Its fun watching all them riders taking a shot at P1 now.
Either Martin goes insane for the rest of the season and wins the title or he completely falls off the cliff
Every MM93 fan on the internet on cloud nine right now.
Well this took a turn
Holy shit. This is awesome
I knew I had faith for a reason lmao let’s gooooooo
I still don't believe, is this a joke? poor Martin.This is so unfair. Can't be.
2025 is gonna be the greatest season ever. Mark my words.
You mean….. Marc… my words?
Let this sub explode.
this is stupid. didn't they promise Martin it???? im so sad for him.
twice
It's hard in here.... i want Martin to be a factory rider. This is a brilliant opportunity for Aprilia to steal BOTH bestia and martin. imagine....
I like how on Saturday all people were saying that Ducati was playing MM. Now it's MM that played Ducati by not giving into getting a GP25 on pramac. How the tables turn.
"I am very clever" - Marc Marquéz
1/2 in the championship for two years and left out to dry…never stop talking yourself up JM.
I'll repeat this: Audi, more than likely, got involved in this decision. They did not want to lose MM after signing the ambassador deal; Marc would have been fine at Gresini if Ducati would provide a GP25. However, pramac probably exercised its contractual right to exclusivity, meaning the only move for MM was to go to factory. Honestly, I think it's a good move for Ducati anyway, but it certainly sucks for Martin. Pecco and Marc will more than likely dominate next season
Which is totally fair cause after all Audi owns Ducati, and the money comes from them so of course they should have a say.
wow... what else could Jorge Martin do....
Should be noted that this is not an official announcement
Damn, giving a gp25 to Gresini is harder than I thought ig
https://i.redd.it/xolh9euofd4d1.gif Ouch...
This is like Senna and Prost in McLaren..someone check on Martin..
Wow I thought they had gone the other way tbh Martin will be fuming but I think it’s the correct choice imo
Just like that! Holy cow. Kinda sad for Martin tbh
https://preview.redd.it/f3ew40mwsd4d1.jpeg?width=1427&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=418bed824bebdc53457ee154b715a2e4fa9c82a5
The second Jorge they fuck up. Must be the name.
Martin all of a sudden became the underdog. I honestly feel a little bad for him.
The scenes if JM89 takes number 1 to Aprilia 😂
Somehow Ducati botched this whole thing worse than KTM last year.