Reigning MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez says every new season is “getting harder” to prepare for because of the injuries he has suffered over the years.

The factory Ducati rider dominated the 2025 campaign with 11 grand prix victories on his way to his seventh premier class title.

It marked his first in six years and came five years on from the career-threatening arm injury he suffered at the start of the 2020 season.

Marc Marquez comes into the 2026 season having just turned 33, but said age was not making his preparations for new season harder.

Rather, he admits his body is getting “lazier and lazier” from injuries, having spent last winter recovering from a complicated shoulder fracture.

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“For me, it’s not getting harder with age; it’s getting harder with the injuries. Not with age,” he said during the Buriram test.

“In the end, I feel still young on the mental side.

“But it’s true with the injuries, one and then another one and then another one, that makes my body lazier and lazier, and it takes more time [to recover].

“That’s the reason this winter it was super long, and still we are working on it. It’s true that after Thailand race we have two weeks more [to recover].

“So, let’s see if we can continue on that evolution.”

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Marquez injured his shoulder in a collision with Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi on the opening lap of last October’s Indonesian Grand Prix.

Initially, he was deemed not to need any surgery on the injury, though there was ultimately no sign of healing within the first week.

He then underwent an operation on the injury, which ruled him out for the rest of the 2025 season.

Marquez only returned to riding on-track in January, though made it through the pre-season testing phase without any major issues.

He admitted during the Buriram test that he had yet to come to an agreement with Ducati on a new deal because he was evaluating his shoulder recovery.

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Ducati has been pushing to sign him to a two-year contract, which is now expected to be announced in the coming days ahead of the new season starting in Thailand.

He is set to be joined by Pedro Acosta, while current Ducati rider Pecco Bagnaia is in line to move to Aprilia.

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