Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez hit the track together in Spain last week as their respective preparations for the 2025 MotoGP seওasons picked up.

For Marquez, the day’s riding he put in at the Aspar Circuit was his first on the new Ducati Panigale V2, lighter but less powerful ﷺthan the previous iteration of the bike and a perk of Ma♉rquez’s new position as a factory Ducati rider.

On the other hand, Martin was getting a taste of the Aprilia RSV4, a perhaps slightly overkill bike for what is essentially a kart track at the Aspar Circuit, on his first day on the asphalt since his factory 🌠Aprilia contract began at the beginning of January.

Not only were the two at the track❀ together, but they put in some laps riding with each other, getting a decent look at each other before official MotoGP testing begins in February.

It wasn’t the fi𓆏rst time this off-season that Martin and Marquez have ridden together, with the two Spaniards riding some ♒motocross together in December.

One of the key storylines of💛 thꦯe 2024 MotoGP season, that ultimately saw Martin crowned champion in the premier class for the first time, was Ducati’s decision on the rider that should partner Francesco Bagnaia in the Ducati Lenovo Team for the 2025 and 2026 MotoGP seasons.

Marquez and Martin went head-to-head in the battle to secure the second factory Ducati seat, along with En💖ea Bastianini. Ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, it seemed certain that Martin would join Bagnaia but, by the end of the post-race test at Muge🌱llo, Ducati had chosen Marquez and Martin had signed for Aprilia.

In 2025, the continuation of that narrative will be how Martin can challenge Ducati’s dominance with Aprilia, which was the only manufacturer other than Ducati to wi🍰n a race in 2024, and how he will compare to Marquez and Bagnaia, who enter this year as the clear favourites to challenge for the title.