Behind-the-scenes insight into telling Marc Marquez body language

The smile on Marc Marquez’s face is only getting broader.

After his dominant 2025 MotoGP season-opening Thailand round, he might be smiling even more after rounds two and three in Argentina and Texas, a pair of his favourite circuits.

But away from the TV cameras, Marquez is exhibiting body language which might concern his rivals.

“Marc looked really relaxed, perhaps the most relaxed that I’ve seen him,” Peter McLaren told the Crash MotoGP podcast from the Buriram paddock.

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“The way it works is: they come into the media room, sometimes they queue up.

“Some riders love that. Jack Miller, for example, chats to the other riders.

“Others keep themselves to themselves. Marc is like this sometimes, just speaking to his press officer or his assistant.

“But Marc has been really relaxed. He is as comfortable off the track and he is on the track.

“There is no change with Pecco Bagnaia.

“He is very calm, we know how he is, he does not panic.

“Pecco has said he’s got a lot of work to do, a lot of catching up to do. He needs to find pace to put pressure on Marc.

“We didn’t think there would be a clear gap at the first round.

“Rewind a year ago: Gigi Dall’Igna saw something in the data to sign Marc before he’d won any races.

“Now we are seeing what Gigi saw on the computer screens a year ago.”

Gigi Dall'Igna 'end game' was to sign Marc Marquez

Much of the pre-season talk, after Ducati signed Marquez to their factory team, centred around the atmosphere in the garage.

Would Marquez cause a fuss in an otherwise tranquil garage which had helped Bagnaia to two MotoGP titles?

So far, it has been a haven of smiles on Marquez’s side.

“He has essentially stepped into enemy territory,” Lewis Duncan said.

“There was maybe a wonder, when Marc was signed to the factory team and wasn’t allowed to take Frankie Carchedi or Santi Hernandez. The only reason Hernandez didn’t join him at Gresini is because Marc refused to sign a two-year deal and [Ducati] didn’t want their secrets [being given] away.

“There were little thoughts: ‘Marc is coming into the team, how will it work with Gigi, a proud engineer who won’t want his team’s efforts masked by a rider’s ability?’

“When Marc comes in, he’ll be branded the winner rather than the bike.

“But we saw quickly, Marc and Gigi sat together laughing. It seems a relaxed atmosphere.

“Ducati know they’ve got something special in their hands.

“This is Gigi’s end-game. He came in 2014 at Ducati’s lowest point and he built it to a point where they won races and championships.

“But the ultimate goal for any manufacturer is to have the best rider winning a championship.

“They tried with Valentino Rossi and it didn’t work. They haven’t had the opportunity to do it again. Bagnaia and Martin were young riders who came through their system.

“It will probably get to a point where Marc fights for the championship, or wins it. That is the end-game for all of their hard work.

“They have an opportunity to become legends in MotoGP.

“It’s one thing to win a championship with Bagnaia, but another to win it with Marquez. That’s why it’s so harmonious.

“They’ve got the best bike and the best rider. That’s a combination which doesn’t happen often.”