Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi has revealed that reigning MotoGP champion Marc Marquez is still not fully recovered from his shoulder injuries sustained last year in Indonesia. Despite showing flashes of speed at the US Grand Prix, Tardozzi told Sky Italia that Marquez remains physically compromised: “If you ask me for a percentage, I can’t say, but I’m sure he’s not in good shape. Unfortunately, what happened in Indonesia is still having consequences. He’s not back to normal yet.”
Meanwhile, Ducati faces additional pressure as Aprilia continues its rapid rise in performance, having secured another one-two finish with Marco Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin in Austin. Tardozzi noted the significant progress made by Aprilia over the winter, suggesting that while Aprilia has found seven or eight tenths of a second, Ducati’s gains have been more modest.
Ducati’s top riders struggled with tyre wear at COTA, with Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio di Giannantonio both experiencing excessive rear tyre degradation, particularly on the right side. Tardozzi confirmed that this issue severely hampered their pace: “They were too dependent on the rear, wear was too high, and at a certain point, they could no longer ride.”
Despite these challenges, Marquez demonstrated his competitiveness by setting an impressive mid-race pace after serving a long lap penalty, making up significant ground and finishing fifth. “When he’s in healthy shape, he’s capable of staying up front,” Tardozzi added.
Looking ahead, Marquez will use the upcoming one-month break—caused by the postponement of the Qatar round—to focus on his recovery. Tardozzi is also expecting technical improvements from Ducati’s engineers, especially with the introduction of new rear aero and leg wings inspired by Aprilia.
Currently, di Giannantonio is Ducati’s highest-placed rider in the championship, sitting fourth and 31 points behind leader Bezzecchi. Marquez is in fifth, 36 points adrift, after losing ground due to a wheel rim failure in Thailand and a costly mistake in the COTA Sprint.
