Marc Marquez has a contract with Honda until 2024 (inclusive), but the bike’s performance, despite the improvements, lead many to believe that he won’t complete it and that he will change teams sooner, as early as next year. Jorge Lorenzo is of the same opinion and believes that the destination of the multiple champion will be Ducati, albeit with some uncertainties.
In a video posted by Motogp.com, Lorenzo was asked if Marquez will race for a manufacturer other than Honda and, even though he seemed to think about it for a while, he immediately replied: “Yes”. And when it came to answering the question of which manufacturer he thinks it will be, he added: “I think Ducati, yes.”
However, the #99 believes Marquez will have to accept a salary cut from Ducati to sign him. “Soon, yes. The offer won’t make him happy, but he will accept it,” he said. However, he’s not sure if he’ll end up in the factory team or in one of the satellite teams: “I don’t know if he’ll end up in the factory team or in a satellite team. But after three or four years without a win, his motivation will be to get back to winning “.
Ducati has a competitive lineup of riders spread across four teams, with eight bikes. This means that, even in Ducati, Marquez should beat at least seven other rivals on the reference bike from Borgo Panigale. But Lorenzo is convinced that he would be the rider to beat, the main contender for another World Championship: “Yes, he would be the rider to beat. He will be 31 or 32 and the young riders are very strong, but naturally Marc Marquez is Marc Márquez”.
When asked who the next MotoGP champion will be without considering Pecco Bagnaia, Lorenzo hesitated before answering: “It’s difficult… Jorge Martin or Bastianini. He will be a Ducati rider.” However, he immediately wondered if Martin would stay at Ducati: “Yes… They say he’s going to Yamaha, right? I think he was offended because Ducati chose Bastianini.”
He spoke very positively of Enea Bastianini: “I like Bastianini, I like his style. He just needs to improve the starts, the first laps and qualifying. He’s an animal in the race. I like him”.
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