The 2025 MotoGP Catalan Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya gave home fans something to cheer about as Alex Marquez delivered a sensational performance. The Spaniard, riding for BK8 Gresini Ducati, stormed to pole position by setting a new all-time lap record, securing his first pole of the season.
Strong Form All Weekend
Marquez had been on the pace throughout practice, consistently among the frontrunners, and converted that speed into a flawless qualifying run.
After grabbing pole, the younger Marquez shared his delight:
“I’m really happy. My first time attack already went well and that gave me confidence. When you start strong, you can put everything together and improve. All weekend I’ve felt great on the bike, riding clean without mistakes. But now the important part begins – the Sprint and the main race where the points are on the line.”
Front-End Issues Still Linger
Despite his pole, Marquez admitted the front-end feeling of his Ducati GP24 still isn’t perfect. He explained that the team experimented with a new setup in the morning session, but it didn’t deliver the results they wanted, forcing them to revert to Friday’s baseline settings.
“Honestly, if you want me to lie I can say yes, but the truth is no. We tried something this morning but it didn’t work as expected. We went back to the setup from yesterday, and with the cooler temperatures the problem was smaller, so we could extract more performance from the front of the bike.”
Eyes on Sprint and Main Race
Pole position is just the first step. The real test awaits in Saturday’s 12-lap Sprint and Sunday’s main race, where Alex Marquez will try to convert his speed into vital championship points and prove that his home pole was no one-off.
