Gresini Ducati rider Alex Marquez has been guaranteed to remain with the team for the 2024 campaign just days after claiming an unprecedented victory at Silverstone.
Alex Marquez who is the younger brother to six-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez joined the premier class division in 2020 with Honda, but it wasn’t until last weekend’s British Grand Prix that he claimed his first victory in the series by winning the sprint race.
Following three challenging years on Honda machinery with only two podium finishes, the outcome outlined his first victory since winning the Moto2 championship in 2019.
Marquez said that despite winning the British MotoGP sprint, he had been somewhat unfocused when the race began since he was getting passed by several other riders.
Later, Marquez was forced to retire early due to a gear shift issue in the main grand prix race on Sunday.
In the wake of the unique victory, Marquez said his brother playfully referred to him as a “bastard” but was really excited for his younger brother.
After switching from Ducati to Gresini for this season, Alex Marquez quickly caught up to the leaders and finished third in just his second race in Argentina. He has achieved two additional top-six finishes this season, and Gresini officially announced his second-year extension on Thursday night.
Considering Gresini’s previous history with both Aprilia and Honda, it is also anticipated that Alex Marquez will continue to ride Ducati machines in the outfit’s third season with the manufacturer.
Marquez signed with the team despite a busy time of MotoGP rider confirmations that fell in line with the championship’s return from its summer break.
Franco Morbidelli’s departure from Yamaha’s factory squad at the end of 2023 was made public last week due to the manufacturer’s recent challenges. Later, news that Alex Rins would leave Honda a year early to replace Morbidelli at Yamaha followed this.
Fabio Quartararo, the 2021 champion and teammate to Morbidelli, has stated that he will decide on his future after an important MotoGP test at Misano in October.
