Marc Marquez’s message to Ducati about his injury recovery ahead of Sepang test

It was Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi who first dipped into the 1:57s, with Alex Marquez setting the early pace. But in the afternoon session, it was Marc Marquez who ended up quickest, clocking a 1:57.018.

Fabio Di Giannantonio and Maverick Vinales rounded out the top three on day one. While it’s only testing and times don’t tell the full story, it was still a positive sign for Marquez after his extended layoff.

Even so, he needed to take things slowly. Speaking to Marca afterwards, Marquez explained that he had asked Ducati for space early on as he struggled to get comfortable with the GP26.

“Well, it went well,” said Marquez. “Stiff, especially in the morning, very stiff on the bike. In fact, I had a plan and I told the Ducati staff: ‘I need the morning for myself. I’m not ready.’ I was optimistic, but it took me a little longer than usual.

“And then in the afternoon when I started riding a MotoGP bike as you should ride one is when we started trying things.”

The opening test of 2026 had other talking points beyond just lap times and physical recoveries. Enea Bastianini had earlier revealed that both he and Francesco Bagnaia were set to leave VR46 at season’s end.

Marc Marquez pleased with recovery progress at Sepang

Marquez said he was pleased with where he stood physically, feeling ahead of schedule in his recovery.

“If you had told me two months ago that I would arrive at the Malaysia test in this condition, I would have signed on the dotted line, because I am better than we expected,” he said.

“But we still have three weeks ahead of us before the first race, which is the goal, where I want to be much better physically, and above all, there are then two more weeks until Brazil, which will also help me to continue improving.”

The 32-year-old will be hoping to reach full fitness by the time the opening race in Thailand comes around. He has also seen a shift in support recently, with more Italian fans getting behind him despite his history with Valentino Rossi.