Alex Marquez has been keeping a low profile at the start of this season. The Gresini rider, who was one of the championship's strongest riders last year, has skipped a generation of Desmosedici to go from the GP24 to the GP26, and the adaptation seems difficult. In Austin, where he had led last year Before being overtaken by Pecco Bagnaia following his brother's crash, Alex could do no better than seventh, completely outclassed by a determined Marc Marquez. The 2025 runner-up is going through a rough patch, but a return to Europe might help him.
Naturally, this result was rather disappointing given his previous form. His frustration is understandable. « I'm not happy because I finished seventh. I'm not satisfied, but honestly, that's what I expected today.We knew we would finish between sixth and ninth place, that was our objective. So we had to try to hold on until the end, not waste time overtaking and try to move up the standings. Starting from the third row is never easy" he declared for GP One.
The Spaniard is clear-sighted about the current hierarchy, and also places Aprilia above Ducati. “I think that today, all the Ducatis showed a fairly similar pace, really very close. But we are not able to exploit their full potential.” For now, we're a little behind Aprilia, so we need to keep working to improve." he continued.
He went into more detail in his explanation: « The Aprilia offers great stability and excellent gripIt feels low, very stable, and has remarkable grip. They're simply better than us, and we need to keep working. The Ducati is still very unstable; it's difficult to know when to push hard and when the grip will be optimal. Finding the limit, or mastering it, is currently very complicated for us. » he added.
Marc Marquez, who was behind after completing his long lap, overtook him in no time with a superb move. Alex Marquez recounts the story in Austin. « When they displayed "+0 Marc", I was already expecting him to overtake meI know him too well. Frankly, he overtook me and I stayed behind him for two or three turns. Then, regaining my composure, I asked myself: "But where is he?" At that point, I thought he was going to lead the race. His pace was impressive. The bike was very stable, with an excellent turning radius and remarkable grip… it was striking to see at that moment.There were only three turns, but at the time, it was really impressive." he concluded.
Can you imagine Alex Marquez regaining his 2025 form in Jerez, where he won last year? Tell us in the comments!
Result of the 2026 MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
Cover photo: Michelin Motorsport