With the MotoGP Concorde Agreement now official, announcements regarding rider signings were to be expected. After Aprilia and Marco Bezzecchi, the factory Ducati team has now announced it will retain defending champion Marc Marquez. 

The team confirmed that the new contract will see Marquez, whose future was surrounded by on-and-off retirement speculation, stay through the 2027 and 2028 seasons. In a statement via MotoGP's website, Marquez said:

"I'm red. I'm truly happy with this new agreement with the Ducati Lenovo Team and to continue being part of this family. When I decided to join Ducati, I was convinced it was the most competitive project. They believed in me, and we built a relationship based on trust and hard work."

Though Marquez and Ducati have dismissed any retirement speculation surrounding him this year, the rumors were apparently never valid enough to begin with. According to a Motorsport.com report, the agreement between Marquez and the factory Ducati team had been signed months ago.

But they kept it under wraps due to the tense environment regarding negotiations around the new Concorde agreement. The report also suggests that the team will announce Pedro Acosta as his teammate soon enough for 2027.

Marc Marquez achieved a historic feat this year with his Hungarian GP victory. He became the third MotoGP driver in history to reach the 100-win mark, joining an elite club comprising Giacomo Agostini and Valentino Rossi.

With his contract renewal, he would certainly look to pass Agostini’s record of 123 career wins.

Unfortunately for Marquez, he had a rather tough start to the 2026 season, with crashes and poor results due to injuries, despite showing flashes of brilliance here and there.

However, after a successful surgery on his shoulder and recovering from his foot injury, Marquez returned to form at the Italian GP and then secured consecutive wins at the Hungarian GP and the Czech GP.

Agostini, however, wants his records to himself and Marquez nowhere near them, at least, jokingly.

Giacomo Agostini: “I’ll tell him to stop sooner!”

The 15-time World Champion recently celebrated his 84th birthday, and GPOne caught up with him at his newly unveiled museum in Bergamo. In this interaction, he reflected on his journey and how motorcycle racing has evolved over the years. 

He was also asked about riders who have tried to break his records, and Marc Marquez being a potential candidate to actually do it. Agostini said that he wants to be around long enough to celebrate with whoever rider breaks his records.

At the same time, he also jokingly quipped that he’ll ask Marquez to ease off.

"As long as they remain mine, I’m happy to have them," said Agostini. "If someone were to break them, I hope to still be here to celebrate together. It’s possible for Marquez, but it’s not easy. We’ll see, I’ll talk to him. Maybe I’ll tell him to stop sooner!"

For Marc Marquez, the 123-win mark is still far away. Moreover, it could only get tougher next year onwards, when MotoGP brings in its new technical era.

Read more at Motor Culture! 

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Yash Kotak