Marquez Renewed with Ducati but Spoke with Honda First

The new contract of MotoGP legend Marc Marquez, extending his bond with Ducati until the 2028 season, was recently finalized. However, the Spanish racer revealed that he had informal contacts with his former team Honda before signing this historic agreement. This meeting, which took place during the Valencia Grand Prix as the previous season was coming to an end, came to the fore during the injury period of Marquez, who recently declared his championship. The seven-time world champion driver emphasized that this meeting, which took place in Honda's hospitality unit, remained only at the level of a friendly conversation. This meeting, where no official offers or contract negotiations were brought up, became a huge subject of curiosity in the MotoGP transfer market.

Making statements to DAZN during the race weekend held at the Assen circuit in the Netherlands, Marquez presented his decisions in an extremely transparent manner. The racer stated that he waited patiently to listen to the offer from Ducati and that he did not want to enter into serious negotiations with other manufacturers as long as he was happy with his current team. When he sat down at the table with the Italian giant, he stated that the agreement was reached very quickly and smoothly. The champion pilot said he preferred to keep the risks he took off the track to a minimum and that he always made his career choices by acting with logic. This agreement reached with Ducati reflects the goal of continuing to be one of the strongest teams in the future of the championship.

Marc Marquez's emotional bond with Honda remains a reality known to everyone in the motorsport world. This Japanese manufacturer, where the Spanish racer started his MotoGP career and won six premier class championships, had been a home where he made history. At the end of the 2023 season, unilaterally terminating his contract worth approximately 20 million Euro annually and joining Gresini Racing without a salary was a great example of courage. The main factor behind this surprising decision, beyond emotional ties, was the desire to win and the logic of having a competitive motorcycle. Marquez, who admitted that a return to Honda could be a very romantic story, clearly revealed that in his career, he listened to his mind rather than his heart, alongside the physical risks he takes on the track.

On the other hand, Honda, which buried its dreams of re-adding Marquez to its roster, had to quickly move on to plan B. Losing one of the most dominant names in the championship in recent years, the Japanese manufacturer turned their attention to French star Fabio Quartararo, convincing him and placing him at the head of their new project. Honda's new project is based on the new 850cc technical regulations that will come into effect in 2027. It is predicted that these comprehensive rule changes in MotoGP will completely reset the competitive order and create new opportunities for manufacturers to get ahead. Nevertheless, Marquez states that despite the uncertainties that the new rules will bring, Ducati and Aprilia will continue to be the benchmark to beat on the tracks.

In this period when new technical regulations are approaching, drivers and their managements could not fully obtain the power they expected in contract negotiations. Marquez humorously admitted that the leading pilots of the championship had difficulty benefiting from this revolutionary change. Stating that because the rules have completely changed, manufacturers cannot guarantee that they will have the best motorcycle in the future, the Spanish racer emphasized that this situation limits bargaining power. However, he stated that the only thing teams can know is the reality of whether they have a good driver. The seven-time world champion, who decided to continue his way with Ducati until 2028, seems to have successfully kept his career on the safest ground before and after these major rule changes.