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Marc Marquez has reportedly decided to leave Honda a year before his contract is up and ride on a Gresini Ducati in the 2024 MotoGP season.
The six-time premier class champion would share the Gresini garage with brother Alex, reports The Netherlands’ Racesport.nl, taking over the seat currently held by Fabio Di Giannantonio.
Marquez did little to quell the furious speculation about his future when he spoke on Spanish television on the eve of this weekend’s San Marino Grand Prix event.
He was asked if the post-event test, when he will ride the 2024 Honda prototype, will be a factor in deciding his future.
The 30-year-old replied, “No, it’s not crucial.
“For me the most important thing on the Monday test is to try the 2024 bike and give to the engineers the best inputs and direction for the future.”
Asked then if he had made his decision, Marquez said, “I have a contract for next year with Honda.”
Pressed if he had in fact made a decision, the response was, again, “I have a contract for next year with Honda.”
What that actually means is questionable.
Repsol Honda Team Principal Alberto Puig said earlier this season, “Every person is free to do what he wants in life, and Honda is not a company that wants to have people that are not happy being in Honda.
“So, of course, we have a contract with him, but also Honda respects Marc a lot and I want to think yes [Marquez will be a Honda rider in 2024] based on the contract, but I don’t have a magic ball.”
The Japanese manufacturers, Honda and Yamaha, have experienced major falls from grace in MotoGP relative to their European rivals, Ducati (Italy), KTM (Austria), and Aprilia (Italy).
That Marc Marquez would entertain breaking a contract with Honda to move from its factory team to the third-string, at best, Ducati squad speaks volumes.
However, Alex Marquez qualified on pole position for the first time in his career at Argentina’s Termas de Rio Hondo in April, converted it into a first podium since 2020, and then won the Sprint at Britain’s Silverstone.
The factory Ducati Team is full, its riders being 2022 champion Francesco Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini, while Pramac Racing is expected to confirmed Franco Morbidelli alongside Jorge Martin and the VR46 Racing Team has now announced the renewal of Luca Marini as team-mate to Marco Bezzecchi.
Gresini Racing, on the other hand, is still holding out on filling one of its seats, which appears earmarked for #93.
