Overview
- Marquez, who had shoulder and foot operations on Sunday, was ruled out of Barcelona as Ducati said Thursday it cannot yet confirm his return for Mugello.
- Surgeons removed a bent and a broken screw from a 2019 shoulder repair and a bone fragment to ease radial nerve compression, with his fractured foot also stabilized.
- Ducati is fielding only Francesco Bagnaia this weekend in Barcelona and has flagged Michele Pirro or WorldSBK leader Nicolo Bulega as possible Mugello stand-ins if needed.
- Friday’s FP1 at Catalunya ended with Alex Marquez fastest, while Jorge Martin crashed at Turn 12, was checked by MotoGP’s doctor, and returned for post-session practice starts.
- Aprilia leads the standings with Marco Bezzecchi one point ahead of Martin after Le Mans, setting up an in-house title fight as Marquez recovers.