Marc Marquez fools everyone: "It was a marketing strategy"

The MotoGP weekend at Jerez delivered plenty of twists in the Ducati garage. Marc Marquez took pole position and won the Sprint, but in Sunday’s race he crashed on the second lap. On the other side of the garage, the story wasn’t much different, with Pecco Bagnaia forced to retire due to technical problems with his Desmosedici GP26.

The MotoGP World Championship wrapped up its first European round on the calendar, with victory going to the Gresini team thanks to Alex Marquez. It’s not a great moment for the factory Ducati squad, which in 2026 has still not stepped onto the top step of the podium in a full-length race. Between the two riders there remains a good understanding and collaboration to push forward the evolution of the latest 1000cc prototype. Cameras inside the garage caught a conversation between Marc and Pecco before the start of free practice at Jerez.

The nine-time world champion asked Bagnaia if he had rested after the United States Grand Prix. “I haven’t rested much, too much training,” replied the Piedmontese rider. “I was in Japan, a bit here and a bit there,” Marc Marquez shot back. “You like to stir things up,” joked Pecco Bagnaia. “You posted a photo at Haneda Airport… you really made a mess.” Many thought the Cervera phenomenon was heading to Japan to meet Honda’s top brass and sign his return to the Repsol Honda team...

Instead, #93 took part in a commercial event organized by Shoei, his helmet supplier. Marc posted a photo from the Land of the Rising Sun’s airport without any explanation, thus fueling rumors about the reasons for his trip... “It’s a marketing strategy; otherwise, what would they talk about on the podcasts?” Marquez joked.

At a time when there’s a lot of talk about his potential renewal with Ducati or other options on the table, seeing him in Japan led many to speculate about an unexpected return to Honda. With the Qatar GP postponed and the resulting gap in the calendar, theories about secret meetings with HRC executives spread like wildfire across podcasts by so-called experts.

The trip was simply to attend a Shoei party, the helmet brand he has been tied to his whole life. The funny part of this story is that Marc Marquez himself admitted he posted the airport photo to see how people would react. A marketing move to draw attention and magnetize media focus. Even when he’s off the track, the Cervera phenomenon knows how to be the main protagonist...