MotoGP set to usher in a new world order after a round of rider musical chairs Premium

2024 MotoGP season preview: Marquez joins Ducati, Bagnaia aims to defend title, rivals eye Ducati's dominance, exciting battles ahead.

It is that time of the year when motorsport team factories are beehives of activity in preparation for the new season. Having slogged through the winter, engineers try to fit the final pieces of the jigsaw puzzle before pre-season testing begins.

A sense of anticipation fills the air, as teams and athletes hope to be at the sharp end of the field. There is also a palpable increase in excitement when there are big storylines to follow.

This is one of those years in which a multiple world champion joining forces with a pedigreed Italian manufacturer, identified by its iconic red livery, has created enormous buzz. Much like Formula One, where Lewis Hamilton’s jaw-dropping switch to Ferrari has whetted the appetite of fans, the world of two-wheeler racing will change dramatically when six-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez boards the Ducati.

The 2024 season was already a watershed year, with Jorge Martin becoming the first rider in MotoGP history to win a premier class title riding for a satellite operation. In a thrilling campaign that went down to the wire, Martin, representing Prima Pramac Racing, finished ahead of Ducati’s factory rider, Francesco Bagnaia, by just 10 points.

Though Bagnaia won 11 races to Martin’s three, the latter consistently banked the podiums on days when he was not winning. Bagnaia, in contrast, had a lot of non-finishes through a mix of his errors and bad luck when he got taken out by rivals. Martin was also particularly impressive in the sprint events, winning on seven Saturdays.

For years, Martin had been expected to earn a promotion to the factory Ducati team, having fought for the title in 2023 before losing to Bagnaia. He had almost agreed a deal to become a Ducati rider before it fell through at the last minute. In June 2024, the Spaniard announced he would leave the Ducati family to join rival Italian manufacturer Aprilia’s factory operation.

Martin’s move was triggered by what had happened a year earlier: in 2023, Marquez left Honda for a satellite Ducati team in Gresini Racing after his patience with the Japanese manufacturer that had powered him to six world titles ran out. Despite riding the ’23 Ducati last year, Marquez finished third overall and won three races, ending a three-year winless run. It showed that he was still on top of his game and, given the right machinery, could fight for the championship.