An armchair for two and a number one spot to fill: Ducati has everything to lose

The circle is tightening. With the GP to be held in Barcelona this weekend, Ducati has just a dozen days to decide on Pecco Bagnaia's future teammate.

We are not among those who believe in a decision made solely on the basis of results. But even if that were the case, the two main candidates, Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez, should be evaluated not so much for their wins and podiums as for their growth. And the performances of both Jorge and Marc, back to competitiveness after four years of operations, are absolutely astounding.

The decision, therefore, will be made primarily on the basis of political arguments that - hear hear - do not cut Enea Bastianini out of the equation, although the Beast at the moment is definitely the weak link in the chain. His strength, in fact, is his friendship with Bagnaia, who mistakenly does not consider him an opponent, but also his consistency. A key quality for a second slot. Although Ducati insists on not labeling any of its riders that way.

The realy big problem is that the decision will be made before the world championship has given any sure indications of the way it is going to pan out. Without beating about the bush: Domenicali and Dall'Igna are in serious danger of winning the world championship with a rider who could then take the No. 1 plate away to KTM or even Aprilia.

One might say: well, that's not too bad. But it gets worse. The solution envisioned by many, that is, bringing Jorge Martin into the factory team and convincing Marc Marquez to accept an offer from Pramac with the assurance of equal treatment with Jorge this year, thus the GP25, upgrades and equal treatment, might lead to the incredible result of seeing the Pramac team win the world championship two years in a row! This year with Jorge, and next year with Marc.

That would be a real insult for the Rossa, which could, as early as 2025, have to scale back its economic claims to its sponsors if the trend of victories continues as in this first phase of the championship. Without taking into account, of course, the enormous media clout of the eight-time world champion, who would arrive at Paolo Campinoti 's house with quite a slew of personal sponsors: Red Bull (Ducati has Monster Energy), Allianz (Ducati has Unipol Sai), Korea's Samsung versus China's Lenovo, Oakley versus Carrera, and the Estrella Galicia brewery versus Franciacorta Contadi Castaldi.