After matching Angel Nieto’s 90 career wins this past weekend in Argentina, there is little doubt that the 8-time World Champion Marc Marquez is a title contender. And given his form so far, heading into the Circuit of the Americas, 2025 seems as if it’s the year to lose for Marquez.
Leading the championship charge with 74 points after a clean sweep of Thailand and Argentina, Marc stands 20 points clear of his brother on the GP24, and 31 points ahead of his teammate and two-time championship-winning rider for the Borgo Panigale outfit.
Having made his debut over a decade ago in 2013, the elder Spaniard possess an innate ability to connect and develop a feeling with his machinery to an extent that is rarely seen with others on the grid. Compound that connection with racecraft, consistency, and raw pace, all of the above factors are the not-so secrets to his success so far this year.
Perhaps it’s the return to the old Marc, which many fans have not seen since a major crash at the 2020 season opener in Jerez. The prolonged recovery period, multiple surgeries, and subsequent crashes (Mandalika in 2022) have left the Spaniard out of the title picture for almost half a decade.
Or perhaps it’s Marc helming competitive machinery once again. Recalling back to Honda’s decline in his absence, many riders of the Japanese manufacturer, including Pol Espargaro and 2020 champion Joan Mir struggled to come to grips with the difficult RC213V.
Marc seemed to be the only HRC rider to consistently squeeze performance out of the Honda during their performance downturn, securing pole position at the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix and achieving his 100th premier class podium in Australia the same year.
For the 2025 season, it’s clear that the Spaniard has not lost his touch, even after all the career-ending injuries he sustained. On the same factory bike that Pecco Bagnaia is struggling to come to terms with, and with the reigning world champion in Jorge Martin still sidelined, the season seems all but sealed for Marc.
But it may be too early to predict the championship winner. After all, the grit of Bagnaia could not be understated, with the Italian once crawling back from the jaws of defeat to snatch the 2022 title from Fabio Quartataro.
What is certain though, is that Bagnaia will not go down without a fight, and the 2025 season will set the stage for the ultimate battle for glory between the two Ducati factory riders.
