Amid the start of MotoGP’s earlier than ever 2027 silly season, one name unsurprisingly linked to factory seats is 2025 championship runner-up Alex Marquez.
Specifically it’s the KTM spot expected to be vacated by Ducati-bound Pedro Acosta that Marquez is being mentioned in connection with.
But even with the prospect of the radical new rules for next year shaking up the pecking order of the grid, the idea of the 29-year-old leaving the Ducati fold just when he’s hit his best MotoGP might seem odd.
The sometimes inconsistent racer is coming off the back of a year few previously thought he was capable of. It was by far the best season of his career to date, and one that very much should establish his name on the shopping list for multiple teams for next year.
However, with any chance of joining brother Marc in factory red at Ducati seemingly gone with the team’s rumoured signing of Acosta, and with spots elsewhere filling up quickly (as Honda talks to Fabio Quartararo and Yamaha looks to Jorge Martin), it has led to resurging Austrian brand KTM looking like the most interested right now in Marquez.
Buoyed by new Indian owner Bajaj after last year’s financial woes, the team looks ready to commit to the new era of MotoGP from 2027 – and Marquez would be a strong addition to a line-up that’s also expected to feature the promoted Maverick Vinales, currently at its satellite squad Tech3.
Marquez has, of course, been a factory racer before in MotoGP. Unexpectedly promoted straight from Moto2 world champion to Repsol Honda in November 2019 to fill the spot left by the shock mid-contract retirement of Jorge Lorenzo, that only lasted one season before he was moved down to satellite squad LCR – and given the circumstances of the deal, it likely didn’t bring many of the perks of factory status.
First of those, of course, is financial. Though likely to have been one of the best-paid satellite racers in MotoGP last year thanks more to Ducati’s comprehensive bonus structure than his base salary, Marquez could nonetheless earn multiple times what he’s on with a factory move – something not to be sniffed at as he approaches 30 and after being something of a journeyman career up until this point.
But perhaps more importantly going into a whole new era of MotoGP, there’s the promise of full factory support, something that’s going to be crucial next year with the rule changes. All manufacturers are going to have to field brand new bikes for all their riders, putting a squeeze on development for satellites and meaning that factory colours are almost going to be mandatory for success as the year proceeds.
And, while he might have found a very happy family team that he loves being a part of at Gresini, for his part Marquez also recognises the reality of what 2027 may bring – and says that he needs to carefully consider the options on the table in the coming weeks.
“The market for 2027 is quite crazy,” he said at the team’s presentation on Saturday. “I think that many people will think about making some changes on their teams. People will say ‘why are they going to that factory if they are not fast now?’
“But there will be new rules, and that will open some options for the future. There will be some risk, because no one knows. Every manufacturer will say to you that they have the best bike!
“But nobody knows, and that’s why we have to be really clever, because the motivation and the expectation of every rider is to be in a factory team.
“In Gresini, I’m super happy – but also I have to look at the balance, and when all the options are on the table I’ll consider the best option for my future.”