As Motorsport.com Italia reports, Alex Marquez crossed the line as the second Ducati at Mandalika, finishing more than 6 seconds behind his brother Marc Marquez. That result left Marc sixth overall, trailing race winner Marco Bezzecchi of Aprilia by 10"7.
The Indonesian GP delivered an absolute masterclass from the Noale manufacturer, placing four bikes in the top four positions for the first time in its history. That staggering poker clearly signals that the MotoGP world championship fight right now is a duel between the defending champion and the powerhouse machines from Aprilia, who are already contemplating team orders.
He saved it, without a doubt. I wouldn't say it was a 'victory', but he came out alive from a difficult circuit for him. A draw, 22 points for each one.
For Alex Marquez, however, the weekend was purely about survival. The Gresini Racing rider struggled all weekend to make the rear tires work with the reinforced casing, finishing 6"1 behind his brother. This year has been a tough contrast to his impressive previous campaign where he secured the runner-up spot.
"It was a weekend of survival, without much else," Alex explained. "We suffered a lot, we saw the Aprilia in the first four positions and, from there, not much more could be done. We finished the race, as a summary of the weekend." He noted that the rear tire dropped significantly during the race, adding that they have already said goodbye to this specific reinforced casing forever with next year's supplier change.
In the championship battle, Marc Marquez left Indonesia with 22 points, exactly matching Jorge Martin, though Martin holds the championship lead by two points. Alex assessed his brother's weekend pragmatically. "He saved it, without a doubt. I wouldn't say it was a 'victory', but he came out alive from a difficult circuit for him. A draw, 22 points for each one."
Looking ahead, Alex warns that upcoming tracks like Australia, Qatar, and Portimao could heavily favor Aprilia. "Marc will have to do those magic tricks of his," he stated regarding the need to salvage difficult weekends. With Aprilia's four strong riders putting on pressure and potentially utilizing team orders, Alex believes Ducati will eventually need to respond in kind as the remaining races wind down.
