Marc Marquez Returns at Mugello: What the Ducati Champion Expects After Double Surgery

• Marquez passed the medical check in Madrid on Tuesday and traveled to Mugello on Wednesday
• Michele Pirro replaces the injured Alex Marquez at Gresini, Cal Crutchlow is being tested as a potential Zarco replacement
• In the championship standings, Marquez sits ninth with an 85-point deficit

Two weeks after his double surgery, Marc Marquez is tackling the Italian Grand Prix weekend. The 33-year-old Spaniard fractured the fifth metatarsal bone of his right foot during a highside crash in the Le Mans sprint race on May 9 and underwent double surgery in Madrid the following day. In addition to stabilizing the foot fracture, a previously planned procedure on his right shoulder was brought forward, during which a damaged screw from an earlier operation in 2019 was removed. This screw had been pressing on the radial nerve and had repeatedly caused problems for Marquez, particularly when riding the Desmosedici.

How Did Marc Marquez Sustain the Shoulder Injury?

The screw in his right shoulder had been damaged since Marquez’s heavy crash with Marco Bezzecchi at the Grand Prix of Mandalika in October 2025. In that accident, the Ducati rider sustained a coracoid fracture and ligament damage. The primary injury was successfully treated at the time, but the bent screws remained in place. It was only when the resulting nerve pain recurred repeatedly at the start of the 2026 season that a corrective operation was planned. The enforced break following the foot fracture at Le Mans provided the right moment to combine both procedures.

What Does Marquez Say About His Comeback at Mugello?

Marquez deliberately kept his expectations measured on Wednesday. The recovery is progressing as planned, I’ve gone back to training normally over the last few days and I will be on track mainly to test my actual feelings and physical condition aboard the Desmosedici GP,” the nine-time world champion explained. He added: “Both surgeries went well, but we are proceeding with all due caution and with the final medical checks at the track.”

The final medical check by MotoGP doctor Angel Charte is scheduled for Thursday at Mugello. Only then will Marquez receive official clearance to race. Following a positive preliminary examination on Tuesday in Madrid with his trusted physicians, the champion had already traveled to Italy on Wednesday.

How Fit Is Marquez Really?

On his social media channels, Marquez posted videos showing him lifting weights with his right arm. However, he was not seen on a motorcycle, neither on a motocross track nor on an asphalt circuit. The radial nerve pain in his right shoulder reportedly only occurred at specific moments, specifically when gripping the handlebars of his MotoGP bike. Whether the shoulder can withstand the particular stresses at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello will only become clear over the course of the weekend. The Tuscan high-speed circuit with its long corners and heavy braking zones is considered one of the most physically demanding on the entire MotoGP calendar.

Marquez addressed the topic directly: “Mugello is an incredible track, to be honest also a very demanding one, but the support of all the Ducatisti will be an extra motivational booster to do well.”

What Does the Break Mean for Marquez’s Championship Chances?

Having missed the Sunday race at Le Mans and the complete Catalan GP race weekend, Marquez has dropped to ninth place in the championship with 57 points. His deficit to championship leader Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) now stands at 85 points. Teammate Pecco Bagnaia is also languishing in eighth place. For the Ducati Lenovo Team, the 2026 season so far has been anything but according to plan, as neither Marquez nor Bagnaia have managed to secure a Grand Prix victory this year.

Recovering an 85-point deficit would be historic for Marquez. His largest deficit that he managed to overturn into a title win during the course of a season was 37 points in 2017 against then-Yamaha rider Maverick Vinales. However, a championship comeback after six of a planned 22 race weekends is not impossible.

Ducati Celebrates 100 Years with Special Livery

Mugello is not only the stage for Marquez’s comeback but also Ducati’s home race. Fittingly, the Italian manufacturer is celebrating its centenary during the race weekend. On Thursday, Marquez and Bagnaia will unveil a special livery for Sunday’s Grand Prix, continuing a tradition from the previous year. Last season, Marquez won both the sprint and the main race at Mugello.

Bagnaia is looking ahead despite a difficult phase. “The Italian GP at Mugello is always a special moment of the season. There isn’t much to say about the track, it’s one of the most beautiful on the calendar, one of those where going fast truly gives you that little something extra. Then there’s the support and affection of the fans, an incredible energy,” Bagnaia said. The Italian had claimed the first season podium for the Ducati Lenovo Team at the dramatic Catalan GP, even though he himself had suffered a hard impact to his wrist and neck from Johann Zarco’s Turn 1 crash.

Who Replaces Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco?

Alongside Marc Marquez’s comeback, the Italian GP also features two prominent absences. Alex Marquez, the champion’s younger brother, was seriously injured at the Catalan GP in Barcelona, sustaining fractures to his collarbone and vertebrae. He will miss at least the races at Mugello and Balaton Park. His place at Gresini Racing will be taken by Ducati test rider Michele Pirro. The 39-year-old Italian knows Mugello intimately from his test work and previous wildcard outings, where he recorded five top-ten results including a seventh place as his best finish in 2019. Pirro had already replaced the injured Fermin Aldeguer at Gresini during the season opener in Thailand, finishing the weekend in 19th place. At Mugello, however, he will not ride the satellite-spec GP25 but will instead step onto Alex Marquez’s GP26.

Johann Zarco is also absent following his heavy crash in Turn 1 of the Catalan GP. The Frenchman sustained knee ligament injuries and a fracture of the lower fibula and is still waiting for the right moment for surgery on his left leg. Finding his replacement proved considerably more complicated for the LCR Honda team. As Motorsport.com reports, Cal Crutchlow is testing on the Honda at Misano on Wednesday to be evaluated as a potential substitute rider.

The Briton had ended his full-time MotoGP career in 2020 at that very team, where he scored all three of his premier class victories. He then switched to Yamaha as a test rider and contested individual Grands Prix as a wildcard or replacement rider. His last race was the 2023 Japanese GP, while planned outings in 2024 at Mugello and Silverstone fell through due to a hand injury. That Honda must now turn to a rider who has not been active in racing for almost three years highlights the strained personnel situation of the Japanese manufacturer. Test rider Takaaki Nakagami is, according to Motorsport.com, fully focused on developing the new 850 cc prototype for 2027. Aleix Espargaro, meanwhile, is still recovering from a serious test crash at Sepang less than a month ago.

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