Marc Marquez is worried, Ducati has raised the level

Marc Marquez managed to limit the damage after a complicated start to the weekend at Silverstone. Qualified in seventh position at the end of Q2, the Spaniard fell during the Sprint, while a podium was within his reach. In the main race, he managed to make his way to the gates of the top-3, before falling one second short of the lowest step on the podium gleaned by Pecco Bagnaia.

The multiple world champion actually tried to err on the side of caution, preferring to leave Silverstone with the points for fourth place, rather than attempt a podium finish, taking the risk of losing control again.

A decision that he explains by the fact that the Ducati Desmosedici GP24 has now taken the lead in this championship. It is therefore becoming more and more complicated for drivers equipped with the old version to make up for the performance deficit with the driving, as they managed to do at the start of the season.

“At the moment, we are four to five seconds slower than the GP24s in a long race, quantifies Marc Marquez in front of the media present in Great Britain. Which means that if we want to compete with them, we have to find two or three tenths per lap. That doesn't seem like much. I can guarantee you it's huge. »

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Alex Marquez already fears the GP25

Given the difficulty Gresini had in keeping up with the GP24s - which Pramac and Ducati Lenovo riders have - in the fast sections, the multiple world champion expects the task to be just as tedious in the next round of the season, which will be played at the Red Bull Ring.

“In Austria it will be difficult. But the objective once again will be to be among the four or five best, Marquez then confides. By seeing how events unfold, we can hope to fight for the podium. As we have done in other races this year. »

It remains to be seen whether the differences estimated by Gresini's men prove to be fair to Spielberg. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that Ducati had a better winter than in 2023.

As a reminder, last year the GP22 won twice in the main race at the same stage of the season, while it was preparing to do so twice more. A factor which somewhat worries Marc's younger brother, who will remain with Gresini in 2025.

“This is the first year that we have seen such a gap between two motorcycles of the same brand but from two different years. We hope Gigi Dall'Igna goes on vacation. History that they have a GP25 not so far from the GP24 as currently” he said with humor, evoking the current differences between the different Ducati machines.

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