P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Year-old Ducatis were a consistent threat to the Italian factory’s newer machines in MotoGP last year. This year – not so much at all, even with Marc Marquez added into the mix.
The 2024 MotoGP championship has seen a significant performance gap between Ducati’s factory GP24 machine and other bikes on the grid, including Marc Marquez’s year-old GP23 bike. This unexpected situation has raised eyebrows among fans and experts alike, given Ducati’s usual gradual transition between seasons. According to sources within the paddock and a visual examination of the machines, there’s a reason for the drop in performance that goes beyond the control of the Gresini and VR46 teams in 2024. Ducati traditionally provides its factory riders with the latest creations from chief engineer Gigi Dall’Igna’s workshop, while the satellite teams inherit year-old bikes with limited modifications for the following season. However, this year, the GP23 bikes raced by Marquez and others are not the fully-developed spec that Bagnaia won the title on, leading to the unexpected leap ahead of last year’s machines with the GP24 bikes.
