No ‘scenes’ at Mugello in this 2026
“Let’s go celebrate Pecco’s podium.” These were practically the first words of Marc Marquez in the Ducati box after the Italian GP at Mugello. The nine-time world champion returned after the surgeries, missing only the Barcelona GP, and emphasized that the goal is not to fight for the title again this year, but to extend his career which foresees at least another two years as an official Ducati rider.
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Davide Tardozzi pointed out that at the moment Ducati is two tenths behind Aprilia, acting as a shield for riders Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia. Before the start of the GP on the starting grid, Pol Espargaró, acting as pit-reporter for DAZN, reminded Tardozzi that a year ago he had to silence the whistles coming from the stands directed at Marc Marquez.
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This year, however, Tardozzi did not have to repeat that because there were no particular complaints against the ‘red’ Marquez: “Marc has integrated perfectly into Ducati. As I have already said, he is a great champion, but we appreciate him even more as a person. He has proven to be a truly wonderful human being – Tardozzi’s words – a year ago I got angry because there are still people who think like ten years ago. Marc has changed, he is different, he is giving us joy and will continue to give us much more.”
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