The Japan Times - Marquez targets eighth MotoGP title as season opens in Thailand

The Spaniard capped a remarkable comeback from injury last year, winning his first championship since 2019 after a gruelling struggle that almost forced him to hang up his helmet.

The 33-year-old Ducati rider was in imperious form all season, winning 25 races including sprints and clinching the title with five events to spare.

Marquez missed the last four races of the season after injuring his collarbone at the Indonesia grand prix with the title already in the bag.

Now he is ready to go again, with his sights firmly set on equalling Italian legend Giacomo Agostini's record eight premier class world titles.

"We must fight for the title one more time," Marquez told reporters in pre-season testing in Malaysia.

"We have the pressure. I mean, if you're in the Ducati Lenovo team then you must fight for the championship, and that is what we will try to do."

Marquez spent the winter rehabbing from his latest injury and he admitted that he was not quite back to full fitness in Malaysia.

He still put in an impressive performance, although it was his brother Alex Marquez who clocked the fastest times in Sepang.

Alex Marquez finished last season as runner-up and he could well challenge his brother for the title again in a field packed with talent.

- 'Stoppie' king -

No fewer than five current or former world champions will line up on the grid. As well as Marc Marquez, the list includes Jorge Martin, Francesco Bagnaia, Fabio Quartararo and Joan Mir.

Martin won the title in 2024 but his campaign last year was wrecked by injuries, which have continue to trouble him into the new year.

Bagnaia had a season to forget, finishing fifth overall.

The Italian will be desperate to rediscover the form that led him to the world title in 2022 and 2023, and he said in Malaysia that he was feeling good on his bike.

"Being able to ride in the way I want and the way I prefer is much better, also for the technicians who need to understand more our feelings," said Bagnaia, Marquez's Ducati team-mate.

"So with this kind of feeling, we can work more, we can understand the items."

Aprilia's Marco Bezzecchi impressed last season, winning three grands prix overall including the final two of the campaign.

The Italian has made a strong start to 2026 and was fastest at the second pre-season test in Thailand last week, setting a new lap record in Buriram.

Pedro Acosta of KTM also did well last year and he will be confident of turning his youthful promise into a first grand prix win this season.

The grid welcomes a new face in Toprak Razgatlioglu, a three-time Superbike world champion who is set to become the first rider from Turkey to compete in MotoGP.

Known for his gravity-defying "stoppie" celebration, where he rides balancing only on his bike's front wheel, the flamboyant 29-year-old brings spectacular skill to the competition.

Brazil's Diogo Moreira, last season's Moto2 world champion, is another new addition after joining Pro Honda LCR.

Moreira will get the chance to race in his home country as MotoGP returns to Brazil for the first time since 1992.

This year's competition will be the last before radical new bike regulations are introduced for the 2027 season.

M.Fujitav--JT