RiderTua.com – Johann Zarco believes Marc Marquez can cause problems for Ducati because of his performance. And Marc is confident he can return to the top of victory, although to become world champion he may have to wait for a second year on Ducati.
Ducati has dominated in MotoGP since the middle of the 2022 season. The Italian brand has won 26 of the last 32 races and 17 of the 21 Sprints contested. And without focusing only on the factory team, considering that Jorge Martin was able to challenge Pecco Bagnaia for the title until the final race last year with the Prima Pramac Racing team, while 26 wins were shared between seven riders, with Alex Marquez who took home two Sprint wins in 2023 (GP UK and Malaysia).
Johann Zarco: Marquez on Ducati is Like a Wolf in a Chicken House
The arrival of Marc Marquez at one of the eight Desmosedici GPs on the grid further strengthens this philosophy. Unlike Pramac, Ducati does not have the final say regarding rider selection for Gresini Racing and Pertamina Enduro VR46. Ducati Corse boss Gigi Dall’Igna some say wanted Martin to win last year’s title to consolidate his control in the premier class, while he said he would have no problem if Marquez won this year.
But does Marc have the potential to cause dissension in the team? One of the first examples was the crash at the last Portuguese GP, namely between Bagnaia and Marquez, but it did not leave a trace: it was officially considered a racing incident, Marc-Pecco discussed but did not cause controversy, and Ducati carefully avoided taking action. attitude. Even for rival brands it’s hard to fault it.
“Marc went too far referring to the closed track in the incident, Bagnaia was too confident (when overtaking Marc). There is always someone to blame, between those who defended and those who played too safe,” said Johann Zarco in Portimao several minutes after the accident…
However, according to Zarco, Marc’s performance could soon cause problems for Ducati. Marc has not yet fully adapted to Ducati, but he is already fighting with the best riders and, according to Zarco, could quickly disrupt the internal balance of forces.
“It will be a very interesting season… I think Marc Marquez on Ducati is like a wolf in the chicken coop. Pecco is very calm, but Marc can make things difficult, so it will be very interesting. And for Ducati, Marc Marquez’s image is also big.”
