In a recent Ducati documentary called “La vida en rojo,” Marc Marquez revealed that he advised Honda to sign Jorge Lorenzo to prevent the Italian marque from gaining traction in MotoGP. Lorenzo, a three-time world champion, made the big move to Ducati in late 2016 after a career with Yamaha, at a time when Ducati was rebuilding its competitiveness.
In 2017, when Marquez dominated as a three-time MotoGP world champion, Lorenzo had just joined Ducati after an exceptional career at Yamaha . Despite a difficult first season in 2017 with only three podiums, Marc Marquez had seen in Lorenzo a latent danger. Just when Lorenzo was already at Ducati, I said to Honda: 'They arrived. The best strategy is to take Lorenzo and put him here, at Honda. Otherwise, another rider from another brand will beat you. because Lorenzo is Lorenzo, five times world champion.' »
Ducati, in full renaissance, took time to adapt to its new champion. In 2018, after a slow start to the season, Lorenzo won his first victories with Ducati, triumphing in Italy, Barcelona and Austria. However, an injury at the Aragon Grand Prix brought his momentum to a halt, and he left the Italian marque at the end of the season.
Honda, listening Marquez, signed Lorenzo for 2019. But this decision, although tactically bold, proved disastrous for "Por Fuera". Lorenzo never managed to adapt to the RC213V, a demanding motorcycle designed around the aggressive style of MarquezTwo serious falls, in Barcelona and Assen, resulted in a back injury and precipitated his retirement at the end of the season.
Marc Marquez today joined the manufacturer he had wanted to weaken
This strategy, often referred to as "strategic co-optation," aims to integrate a rival to neutralize its threat while exploiting its talents. In this case, the idea was clear: remove Lorenzo ranks of Ducati, where he was beginning to excel, and bring him to Honda to minimize its impact.
After years of struggling on a Honda in decline, Marquez joined in 2024 Gresini Ducati and took three victories, proving that talent can flourish with a competitive machine. In 2025, he will ride a Ducati official, himself becoming one of the pillars of the Italian brand he once feared.
The episode highlights the complexity of strategic dynamics in MotoGP. Recruiting a rival to weaken his former team is part of a policy designed to perpetuate his own domination. For Honda, the attempt to neutralize Lorenzo has certainly delayed a deadline of precipitous decline with the departure of its star driver Marc Marquez. For Ducati, the departure of Lorenzo will have been a temporary setback before validating its current domination. And for Marquez, the story comes full circle, as he now joins the manufacturer he had wanted to weaken.
