Marc Marquez continued his perfect start to the 2025 MotoGP season with back-to-back victories at the Argentina Grand Prix, further cementing his dominance on the factory Ducati. Despite his impressive pace, the biggest surprise of the season has been his brother, Alex Marquez, who is emerging as a serious title contender on the Gresini-run GP24.
Alex Marquez pushed his older brother hard in both races in Argentina, keeping the pressure on and maintaining a close championship fight. With just 16 points separating the Marquez brothers after two rounds, Marc Marquez acknowledged Alex as his “main opponent” for the 2025 title.
Meanwhile, reigning champion Pecco Bagnaia continues to struggle. A distant fourth-place finish in Argentina leaves him 31 points behind Marc Marquez in the standings, raising questions about whether he can mount a serious challenge this season.
According to Crash MotoGP Editor Peter McLaren, Bagnaia’s hopes of closing the gap may rest on upcoming technical upgrades. “Until Ducati introduces the chassis and aero upgrades, I don’t see things changing for Pecco,” McLaren explained on the latest Crash MotoGP podcast. However, he also warned that these upgrades could just as easily strengthen Marc Marquez’s dominance.
So far, Bagnaia has been unable to disrupt Marc’s momentum. “It’s not just 4-0 in terms of race wins—Marc has been ahead of Pecco in every track session this season,” McLaren noted. “Pecco needs to break this run, even if it’s just in practice or qualifying, to unsettle Marc’s rhythm. But doing that at COTA, where Marc has been unbeatable, will be a huge challenge.”
Another potential issue for Bagnaia is the delayed introduction of Ducati’s 2025 chassis. While the upgrade was tested successfully on the GP24 last year, Ducati chose to hold it back to maintain a level playing field between Bagnaia and Jorge Martin during the 2024 title fight. Now, with Bagnaia struggling, Ducati may turn to Alex Marquez to test the upgraded chassis at Jerez next month—a move that could further strengthen Alex’s advantage over Bagnaia.
As the season progresses, Bagnaia faces an uphill battle to regain his footing. Meanwhile, Alex Marquez continues to grow stronger, raising the possibility that he could remain ahead of Bagnaia and become the biggest threat to his brother’s title ambitions.
