Marc Márquez Instills Fear in Thailand

Tailandia hosts the final test before the start of the motorcycle championship, scheduled for the first weekend of March at this very circuit in Buriram. Two days of testing will help finalize the 2025 machines and serve as a tune-up for the first grand prix of the year.

The most notable absence is Jorge Martín, recovering from surgery on his right hand after his crash last week in Malaysia. The world champion has chosen not to take risks and aims to be fully recovered for the start of the World Championship, although he will face a clear deficit in mileage on his new Aprilia, having only completed 77 laps in Montmeló in November and 13 in Sepang before his fall. Raúl Fernández, who injured his left hand on the same day as Martín and also underwent surgery last week, is present. The Madrid rider will be a great asset in developing the Aprilia, being the only rider with prior experience on the Italian bike.

These two days in Thailand will be crucial for the upcoming season and beyond, as the engines homologated just before the first race of the 2025 season will be frozen until 2027, when a new regulation with reduced displacement in the premier class and a commitment to a more sustainable championship will be introduced.

After three days of testing in Malaysia, the Ducati team left with doubts about whether the new 2025 engine was better than the 2024 one. Both Marc Márquez and Pecco Bagnaia agreed that there were areas where last season's engine performed better than the latest generation, although the latter had more potential and room for improvement. These are the tasks to be resolved in the red box and among the other European brands (Aprilia and KTM). Not so for the Japanese manufacturers (Honda and Yamaha), whose lack of competitiveness in recent years allows them a series of technical concessions, such as evolving their engines during the current season.

Unlike the Malaysia test, the Thailand program included a midday break for MotoGP start practice, splitting the day into two qualifying sessions. Álex Márquez led the first session, having already been the fastest in Barcelona and Sepang, proving he is at a level beyond a mere participant in the category. His morning time (1'29.649) kept him at the top of the timesheets until the final minutes of the day, when his older brother emerged.

Almost at the buzzer, Marc Márquez shattered the clock, reducing the time by nearly half a second (1'29.184) and coming very close to the circuit's absolute record, which is the pole set here by Bagnaia in 2024. With the first day of testing concluded, the classification was divided between Marc Márquez and the rest, as the 465 milliseconds by which he led his brother Álex was greater than the distance between the second and eleventh places.

Dominance of the Márquez brothers on the first day of testing, and of the Ducatis, with Franco Morbidelli completing the 'hat-trick'. Good news also for Aprilia, as Martín's teammate, Marco Bezzecchi, spent the entire day in the leading positions and finished with the fourth-best time, with Pedro Acosta in fifth place, despite being one of the few who did not improve in the afternoon session. There was once again a presence of all five manufacturers in the top 10, highlighting the progress made in 2025 by Honda and Yamaha.

This Thursday in Thailand, the MotoGP preseason will draw to a close with the final day of testing before the lights go out at the Buriram circuit to start the 2025 motorcycle season.