Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s Nicolo Bulega says he and the team “have lots of work to do” following WorldSBK testing at Portimao.

Bulega finished the test second fastest behind BMW’s Toprak Razgatlioglu, but the Italian was over half a second down on the reigning world champion’s best lap time. 

The teams faced limited test time due to inclement weather in Portugal, which meant they could only run for half days on each of the two days of testing. 

The championship leader was further restricted following a crash at Turn 11, from which the he was fortunate to walk away uninjured. 

Bulega admitted it was a “difficult” test for the team after earning a treble of race victories in Phillip Island, but emphasised the end of the session showed promise for the upcoming weekend. 

“It was a bit of a difficult test for us because we worked hard to find a good feeling, but it didn’t arrive,” Bulega said to WorldSBK.com.

“This morning [Day 2] I had a big crash on a very fast corner here in Portimao.

“Fortunately, I am good, but it was more difficult to work because we lost some time as a result, then later the rain made it a difficult and strange test.

“At the end of the session, the last 15 minutes, we were a bit better; we still have lots of work to do but in the end, we were a lot better.”

Alvaro Bautista: Ducati made ‘small changes’ in Portimao WorldSBK test

Bulega’s Ducati teammate Alvaro Bautista finished the Portimao test in eighth, over a second behind Razgatlioglu’s best time. 

The Spanish rider elected not to test on Friday and instead opted for half a day’s running on Saturday.

Despite his limited track time, Bautista suggested he “felt good” on the bike but stressed would have to wait to see how it fairs in race condition.

“We were able to do some laps, especially in the morning, we started the day with the same setup that we finished the last round with, in Australia.” said Bautista.

“The feeling was good, I felt good on the bike. We made some small changes but nothing big. In the afternoon with the rain, the feeling was a bit worse because I couldn’t feel the tires as easily.

“In general, in the morning I felt good, the pace wasn’t too bad, but we will have to see what the conditions will be like on the race weekend. We prepared the base setup and we will adapt the package from there.”

READ MORE: Five things we learned from WorldSBK Phillip Island season opener

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Alex Marquez has hit back at claims he has “too much respect” for elder brother Marc Marquez following Sunday’s MotoGP race in Argentina.

The Gresini rider led most of Sunday’s grand prix but was overtaken with four laps to go, eventually finishing 1.362s behind the factory Ducati rider.

After the race, the younger Marquez was asked if he needs to “break the respect” he has for his brother to beat him, which the Spaniard found “disrespectful.” 

“I’ve had this question many times; ‘when will you lose the respect for Marc [Marquez]’ or ‘you respect too much Marc’,” said Marquez via GPOne.

“For me, this question is disrespectful to me. I’m a rider. I give my 100% always, I try to push for my team, for my sponsors. 

“I know that it’s my brother and I will have an extra respect when I overtake him.

“I’m the first one that wants to beat him and I want to win, but I’m more realistic than everybody because I know how Marc is. 

“I know his strong points and I don’t have any problem saying about them. Maybe you will not say directly what your rival is doing really good, but it’s my brother.

“I don’t have any problem saying it, and I don’t have any problem with accepting if he’s better than me in some points.

“So I will try to learn. I will try to give like always my 100%, but stop thinking I have too much respect for Marc.  We saw it today. We fight each other. He was faster than me and I gave my 100%.

“So I’m happy with second. I know that he is better than me in some areas and I will try to improve for the future.”

Marquez: ‘we need to improve in order to win’

Marquez came close to winning his first Grand Prix race but had to settle for a fourth-consecutive second place in races. 

The Cervera native admitted the elder Marquez can push more in the later stages of the race, and suggested this is an area he is seeking to improve. 

“I tried to push from the beginning, I did a good start, Pecco [Bagnaia] attacked me in turn 3 but I was able to come back to second,” Marquez said.

“I was feeling really good, I had a lot of doubts before the race about the tyre choice, but in the end I decided to be like Marc and Pecco with the medium rear.

“Later, when Marc did a small mistake at turn one I said, ‘OK, I go for it’. I tried to put a nice pace and was able to make a gap to the second group.”

“When he attacked me at Turn 5 I said, ‘OK, time to try’,” he added. 

“So I gave my 100%. I did a ‘38.3 but he was able to make ‘38.2. I was really on the limit. Nearly crashing all the corners.

“I tried to fight with him and to be there. But he’s able to be more on the limit in the last part of the race. So we need to improve there.

“But I’m super happy about all the weekend.”

Marquez: ‘I’m at my strongest in MotoGP right now’ 

The younger Marquez brother has never finished higher than eighth in a MotoGP World Championship season but currently sits second in the standings after a strong start to 2025. 

The Gresini rider confirmed he feels he is riding the best he ever has in the premier class. 

“It’s the moment where I feel at my strongest in MotoGP,” Marquez said.

“This bike suits me in a really good way with the riding style. So I’m just enjoying being on the bike. 

“I’m playing with the bike and it’s something really great. Just we need to keep going like that.

“The team are doing a super job, also the support from Ducati. We need to understand a few things from Marc, but here we were closer and it’s super nice to fight with your brother for a MotoGP victory.”

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Marc Marquez identified a surprise name he believes is his main MotoGP title opponent for the 2025 season.

Marquez completed back-to-back grand slams in Argentina, claiming pole before winning the Sprint and Grand Prix.

The Spaniard extended his lead at the top of the championship, equalling Angel Nieto’s record of 90 total wins.

He defeated his younger brother Alex Marquez by less than a second in the Sprint, before winning the race by 1.3s despite following him for most of the race after making an unforced error.

The Marquez brothers once again featured on the top two steps of the podium, before Marc stated post-race that he believes his younger brother is his main opponent for the championship.

“But Alex today I’m very impressed about his riding style. He was super smooth,” said Marquez to Crash.net.

“And I know when he is super convinced he is able to win a world championship, like he did in Moto3, in Moto2.

“So, at the end he is the main opponent for the championship.”

Marc Marquez took a ‘lot of risks’ to win the race

Despite leading for the first three laps Marquez ran wide at Turn 1 on Lap 4, which allowed his brother to take the lead.

The older brother prevailed in the end following an overtake on Lap 21, before clearing off into the distance to establish a 1.3s advantage.

The factory Ducati rider continued to heap praise on his brother’s performance, stating he rode “super smooth.”

The Spaniard admitted that to win the race he had to take more risks, which explained the incidents in which he experienced a few wobbles aboard his Desmosedici.

“Today I’m impressed about my brother, about Alex,” he added.

“In one part of the race I was thinking to finish second because he was riding super smooth, super good, always keeping the corner speed.

“I mean his tyre was not smoking. I said ‘ok, this guy today has another level’.

“Then in the end I survived. I took a risk, as you saw, I took a lot of risks – maybe too much in some points of the race.”

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Marc Marquez clinched a resounding MotoGP victory in Argentina, completing dominant back-to-back race victories.

Polesitter Marquez held onto his lead and stayed ahead of his younger brother into Turn 1.

Marco Bezzecchi launched off his Aprilia at Turn 1, which resulted in a retirement, ending a torrid weekend for the factory outfit.

Bezzecchi’s crash forced Fabio Quartararo off the track, dropping down to 19th as a result.

Francesco Bagnaia and Johann Zarco swapped positions but the Italian made the move stick to take third spot, with his eyes set on catching the Marquez brothers.

Ai Ogura continued to impress the paddock by starting strong to claim tenth spot by the end of the second lap, providing some much needed optimism for Aprilia.

An early crash from Enea Bastianini saw him retire on Lap 2 in his second race weekend for KTM.

On Lap 4, Franco Morbidelli slotted himself past Zarco to climb up to fourth place, before younger brother Alex Marquez moved past his older brother for the lead.

Marquez wasn’t able to find the right line and ran wide at Turn 1, allowing the Gresini rider to seize the opportunity and overtake.

Morbidelli’s purple patch continued due to him choosing the soft compound rear tyre, overtaking his fellow VR46 Academy graduate Bagnaia after the long straight.

Quite remarkably, Ogura rose through the grid with relative ease, overtaking Alex Rins, Pedro Acosta, and Joan Mir in the early stages.

The Marquez brothers cemented a 0.8s advantage over Morbidelli as the race reached Lap 8, though the younger brother was under considerable threat out front.

Riders held their positions over the next few laps, with gaps forming between the Marquez brothers, VR46 Ducati rider Morbidelli, and Bagnaia and Zarco.

Few predicted Zarco would still be tailing the factory Ducati, given the Bologna machinery’s dominance, but the Frenchman’s Honda has shown noticeable improvements after a disastrous 2024.

Towards the end of Lap 15, the older Marquez brother had a tank slapper aboard his factory Ducati. It was clear he was pushing hard to catch up to his brother, but there was no way through just yet.

Marquez attempted a lunge at the end of the back straight on Lap 18 in what was an overly ambitious move, but he ran wide and now faces the hard work ahead to catch up.

The gap between the two riders extended to 0.5s, but credit to the incumbent leader, who had the edge at his brother’s strongest points on track.

Marc finally made the move on Lap 20 at the same Turn, ensuring that the race was in his hands.

The eight-time champion stretched his lead to 0.6s yet opted to still ride to the absolute limit, before extending the advantage to over a second.

The factory Ducati rider won once again around the Termas de Rio Hondo, equalling Angel Nieto’s record with the third most wins across all classes.

Marquez crossed the 1.3s clear of his younger brother, who managed to bring home another podium finish.

Morbidelli earned his first MotoGP podium in over four years despite late pressure from Bagnaia, who finished in fourth.

Fabio Di Giannantonio earned fifth following a last lap overtake on Honda rider Zarco, defeating the Frenchman who finished as the lead non-Ducati rider.

Brad Binder finished an impressive seventh for KTM, as rookie sensation Ogura forced his way through on Acosta to snatch eighth.

Joan Mir and Luca Marini finished within three tenths of each other to take tenth and 11th, boasting an impressive outing for the Japanese marque.

Alex Rins earned points to take 12th spot, followed by fellow compatriot Maverick Vinales aboard his RC16 KTM.

Jack Miller and Fabio Quartararo crossed the line 14th and 15th for Yamaha, respectively.

Trackhouse Racing’s Raul Fernandez missed out on the points and finished in 16th, defeating rookie Fermin Aldeguer.

Bastianini recovered from his crash to finish in 18th, ahead of rookie Somkiat Chantra who occupied 19th and finished as the final classified rider.

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Marc Marquez continued his MotoGP winning streak as he earned a third-consecutive victory in 2025 at the Argentina Sprint race. 

The Spanish rider came under significant pressure from Gresini’s Alex Marquez, but was able to maintain his composure to seal a third win in 2025. 

Marquez got a fantastic start from pole position and was able to maintain the lead down into the first corner. 

Francesco Bagnaia also got a good start on the second factory Ducati and was able to overtake Johann Zarco for third into Turn 1. 

Gresini’s Marquez preserved his second place but quickly came under pressure from Bagnaia, but the Italian was unable to get through after coming under fire from the fast-starting Fabio Quartararo.

The younger Marquez was the fastest rider on track in the early stages of the race and was able to break clear of Bagnaia to chase after his brother out front. 

Pedro Acosta made it past the duelling Zarco and Quartararo as he looked to continue a strong weekend, but was quickly passed by both riders.

The Frenchman was the fastest rider on track in the closing stages of the Sprint and he looked to cut the deficit to Bagnaia in third. 

At the front, it was Marc Marquez who took the chequered flag to continue his perfect record in races in 2025.

Alex Marquez earned another second place for the Gresini team, 0.903s behind the factory Ducati rider.

Despite a late challenge from Zarco, Bagnaia rounded out an all-Ducati podium in third.

Zarco took a welcome fourth for Honda as VR46’s Fabio Di Giannantonio ensured it was four Ducatis inside the top five.

Marco Bezzecchi was sixth for Aprilia after overcoming a challenge from Franco Morbidelli, while Joan Mir was eighth following a late battle with ninth-placed Acosta. 

Quartararo finished outside the points despite a fantastic start to the race in tenth, with Jack Miller and Alex Rins in 11th and 12th respectively. 

Luca Marini improved to 13th in the Sprint and Tech3 KTM’s Enea Bastianini showcased his late race pace to earn 14th. 

Ai Ogura led the Trackhouse riders over the line in 15th, with Raul Fernandez narrowly behind in 16th. 

Somkiat Chantra finished the race in 17th ahead of the struggling Maverick Vinales in 18th.

Fermin Aldeguer crashed on lap six but rejoined to complete the finishers in 19th.

Lorenzo Savadori retired from the race with a technical problem, joining Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder as the retirements from the Sprint.  

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Marc Marquez demolished his own lap record to take a stunning pole position in Argentina MotoGP qualifying for Ducati.

Marquez set a new lap record on his first flying run in qualifying by a tenth, which he then surpassed one lap later to post a benchmark time of 1:37.023.

Nobody was able to beat the original time posted by the Spanish rider, but on his penultimate run he bested his previous records with a 1:36.917 to confirm his pole position. 

Alex Marquez took second place, 0.246s off his brother’s best time of the session.  

Johann Zarco completed the front row with a shock third place for the LCR Honda team. 

Francesco Bagnaia ended the session in fourth place ahead of KTM’s Pedro Acosta, who benefitted from Bagnaia’s slipstream, in fifth. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio achieved sixth in qualifying, while Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo narrowly missed out on the second-row seventh.

Franco Morbidelli was eighth after advancing from Q1 as Marco Bezzecchi took ninth for Aprilia. 

Joan Mir completed the top ten for Honda, a tenth clear of Brad Binder in 11th and Alex Rins in 12th.

Jack Miller narrowly missed out on a Q2 appearance and ended qualifying in 13th. 

Fermin Aldeguer was the top rookie in qualifying after finishing 14th, while Ai Ogura crashed on his last lap and could only take 15th. 

Luca Marini was 16th for the factory Honda team ahead of Pramac’s Miguel Oliveira in 17th.

Raul Fernandez took 18th for the Trackhouse team as three Aprilia riders were eliminated from Q1. 

Somkiat Chantra also crashed on his final run and ended the session in 19th for the LCR Honda team.

Tech3 KTM continued their struggles in qualifying and finished 20th and 21st, with Maverick Vinales leading Enea Bastianini.  

Raul Fernandez was 21st for Trackhouse as Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori completed the standings in 22nd.

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Marc Marquez set the benchmark lap time in the second Argentina MotoGP practice, completing the double to round off a perfect Friday.

The factory Ducati rider rounded off a perfect day by topping both Friday practice sessions and setting a new all-time lap record of 1.37.295s.

His nearest challenger was fellow GP25 Ducati rider Fabio Di Giannantonio, who banked second place in the dying embers of the session.

The younger brother Alex Marquez secured third place, completing a Ducati top-three sweep, with all three positions held by riders from the three Ducati teams.

Marco Bezzecchi posted an impressive time of 1.37.510s to seal fourth place for Aprilia, with his recorded time becoming the first to break the all-time record.

Fifth and sixth places went to KTM rider Brad Binder and Yamahas Alex Rins, both of whom trailed the factory Ducati duo for a tow, adding extra tenths to their respective lap times.

Johann Zarco finished on seventh to finish as the lead Honda rider once again, where he sandwiched himself between the factory Yamaha duo.

Fabio Quartararo tried the same tow strategy as Rins on the factory Ducati, but while following Francesco Bagnaia, the Italian rider crashed out at Turn 2.

Quartararo himself finished eighth in the session, but Bagnaia scraped through into Q2 by finishing in the last automatic qualifying spot.

Pedro Acosta suffered a late crash when riders were completing their outlaps, but dragged his Austrian marque to Q2 to accompany teammate Brad Binder.

Ai Ogura was the nearest challenger to miss out on the second phase of qualifying, but finished ahead of VR46 Ducati rider Franco Morbidelli.

Jack Miller established 14th place for Pramac Yamaha, placing himself in the middle of a factory Honda sandwich comprising of Joan Mir and Luca Marini.

Maverick Vinales finished in 16th place as he continued his adjustment to the KTM, finishing one second behind Marquez’s time attack.

Rookie Fermin Aldeguer established 17th place for Gresini, improving on Miguel Oliveria’s lap by over three tenths of a second.

Somkiat Chantra improved from his performance in the first practice to finish 19th, as the rookie posted a time faster than those of Raul Fernandez and Enea Bastianini.

Once again, Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori finished the session in last spot, stepping in for Jorge Martin this weekend as the Spaniard recovers from injury.

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Factory Ducati rider Marc Marquez topped the timesheets in the first MotoGP practice session at the Autodromo Termas de Rio Hondo.

The Spaniard produced a fantastic lap time of 1.38.937s with five minutes to go, continuing from his dominant season opening performance in Thailand.

Rain fell onto the circuit overnight, resulting in lap times hitting the optimal level expected, with the track surface extremely dirty on all parts of the track.

Regardless of the potential damp patches on the track, riders complied as many laps as possible to understand bike performance.

Johann Zarco finished the session in second aboard the LCR Honda, despite previously impressing as the table-topper in the early parts of the session.

Gresini rider Alex Marquez continued his fine display at the season opener to finish the session in third, but was over fourth tenths behind the top two.

Ducatis dominance continued thanks to Franco Morbidelli posting a time to place him in fourth spot.

2023 Argentine Grand Prix winner Marco Bezzecchi led the classification charts for a small stint during the session, finishing fifth overall and as the lead Aprilia.

Luca Marini posted a strong sixth place for Honda, further solidifying the progress the Japanese marque has made over the winter period.

Jack Miller posted Yamahas best result to finish seventh for Pramac Yamaha, pipping lead KTM rider Maverick Vinales and the second HRC rider of Joan Mir.

The factory KTM duo of Pedro Acosta and Brad Binder finished in tenth and 11th, respectively, separated by under 0.020s.

The factory Yamaha duo of Alex Rins and Fabio Quartararo produced 12th and 13th for their first practice session, placing themselves right in the middle of the pack.

Fabio Di Giannantonio completed his session ten places off his teammate in a lonely 14th, finishing ahead of rookie sensation Ai Ogura.

The second factory Ducati rider, Francesco Bagnaia could only muster 16th, finishing 1.351s off the pace of his table topping teammate Marquez.

Fermin Aldeguer ended his session in 17th in his second MotoGP race weekend, lapping quicker than Miguel Oliveira and fellow rookie Somkiat Chantra.

Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez established 20th position, defeating the struggling Enea Bastianini who closed out proceedings as the last placed full-time rider.

Lorenzo Savadori finished in dead last and over a second adrift, standing in for defending MotoGP champion Jorge Martin.

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Gigi Dall’Igna and Alvaro Bautsita responded to Toprak Razgatlioglu’s claim of Ducati domination in the WorldSBK championship.

The reigning WorldSBK champion Razgatlioglu threatened to quit the series after enduring a difficult season opener in Phillip Island.

The Turkish rider sits eighth in the standings with 20 points after finishing second in Race 1, the only points he accumulated throughout the weekend.

He labelled the series a “Ducati Cup” after Nicolo Bulega completed his first WorldSBK treble for Italian manufacturer, with the top five riders in the standings all representing Panigale machinery.

“I have immense respect for Razgatlioglu because he had a wonderful season last year,” Ducati boss Dall’Igna told GPOne.

“He won 13 races in a row. The truth is that, last year, it was really a BMW Cup!

“In the sense that he dominated from start to finish. Then, as always, things in racing change.

“I don’t think it’s a Ducati Cup. Rather, we certainly have an incredible line-up of riders.”

Alvaro Bautista: Ducati has the ‘best riders’

Two-time WorldSBK champion Bautista elaborated on Dall’Igna’s perspective by discussing Ducatis full rider lineup.

While he admitted that it’s a “combination” of the V4 and riders, he listed each rider’s accolades, which he believes are key factors in understanding the championship standings.

“Although there were six Ducatis, you also have to take into account which riders were riding the Ducati,” said Bautista to BikeSportNews.

“So, we have Nicolo Bulega, Supersport World Champion and 2024 World Championship runner-up.

“Andrea Iannone, who has achieved many Moto2 victories and has also won in MotoGP, as well as Danilo Petrucci.

“And Ducati also has me as 125cc World Champion and two-time Superbike Champion. Everyone talks about the bike, but it’s not just that, it’s also the riders.

“It’s a combination. The Ducati is a good motorcycle because Ducati is constantly working on improvements. And if you also have a good racing driver, then it’s clear what the result will be.

“It can’t be our problem if other manufacturers don’t invest in the best riders.”

READ MORE – Toprak Razgatlioglu threatens to quit WorldSBK after Ducati dominance in Australia

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A spokesperson for Ducati has revealed three of its riders raced at the Thai MotoGP round with the manufacturer’s updated 2025 engine.

Both factory Ducati riders, Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia, as well as Fabio Di Giannantonio all competed with the 2025 specifications in Thailand.

This comes after the Bologna-based factory initially announced all six of its bikes would be using last year’s engine after encountering problems with this year’s prototype throughout winter testing. 

The Italian marque has now gone back on its announcement, with two different types of engines being used by the reigning manufacturers’ champion.

This means that the three riders used a different type to second-placed finisher Alex Marquez, his Gresini teammate Fermin Aldeguer and VR46 rider Franco Morbidelli – all of whom currently ride on GP24s of the specification used at last year’s Austrian Grand Prix.  

“Indeed, they are two different specifications,” a Ducati spokesperson confirmed according to reports from Motorsport.com. 

“The one for Marc, Pecco and Diggia includes some small changes compared to the one for Alex, Franco and Fermin.”

“In the more modern specification, we have taken into account Marc and Pecco’s comments,” added the spokesperson, who emphasised that the differences between the two models “are small”.

Ducati continued its dominance from 2024 into this season’s opener at the Thailand Grand Prix.

Marc Marquez dominated on his factory Ducati debut winning both the sprint race and grand prix, while younger brother Alex finished second in both races. Bagnaia joined the Marquez brothers on the podium in both contests.

Morbidelli made it an all-Ducati top four in the main race, while Di Giannantonio was down in 10th after recovering from a broken collarbone, with Aldeguer in 13th on his MotoGP debut.

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