Alex Marquez targeting factory MotoGP seat at Yamaha and KTM

Last year's runner-up and three-time grand prix winner is negotiating a future away from Gresini and outside Ducati's orbit, with Yamaha and KTM as his targets

Alex Marquez is chasing a factory seat in MotoGP for 2027 following his breakthrough campaign in MotoGP last year.

After spending much of his career in the shadow of his older brother Marc Marquez, the Gresini rider emerged runner-up in 2025 with an impressive campaign that included three grand prix victories, three Sprint wins, twelve podiums and a pole position.

His results last season have not gone unnoticed by other teams, and the Spaniard (who will turn 30 on 23 April) does not want to let the opportunity to ride for a factory team slip through his fingers at the peak of his career.

The younger Marquez made the step up to MotoGP in 2020, signed to replace the unexpectedly retired Jorge Lorenzo at the factory Honda team. That was also the year his brother Marc was sidelined by injury, and Alex endured a difficult campaign ‘alone’ in the HRC garage but still managed two second-place finishes as a rookie.

The following season, Honda moved him to its satellite LCR team, where he became one of the casualties of the Japanese manufacturer’s technical decline.

In 2023, Marquez switched to Gresini, securing a seat aboard a satellite Ducati through his personal sponsors and lining up alongside Fabio Di Giannantonio, then the team’s lead rider under owner Nadia Padovani.

That move changed his career trajectory — and also mirrored the path his brother later took — but financial realities have not reflected his on-track performance. In 2024, Gresini paid him around €350,000, a sum that increased slightly in 2025 but still sits far below what a championship runner-up and multiple winner would typically command.

Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

Jump to a factory seat

With the factory Ducati seats effectively closed — following the Italian marque’s agreement to retain Marc Márquez and bring in Pedro Acosta — Alex Marquez is quietly but swiftly exploring opportunities to secure a factory ride for 2027.

His top targets are Yamaha and KTM, with Aprilia remaining a fallback option. A return to Honda is not currently seen as a realistic prospect.

KTM would be a natural destination given Alex’s long association with Red Bull as a sponsor, and because his personal backing has helped bolster his earnings in the past. However, financial uncertainties surrounding the Austrian manufacturer — which remains in a significant crisis — lead many to believe Yamaha is the Spaniard’s primary objective.

At Yamaha, he would also face internal competition for the seat, particularly from Francesco Bagnaia, who is understood to be among the riders vying for the same position.

Aprilia, with a much smaller budget, would likely pursue Enea Bastianini as its priority after failing to secure a response from Bagnaia’s representatives.

Still, Alex Marquez's journey in MotoGP is not necessarily over if a factory ride does not materialise. His ties with Gresini remain strong, and should his ambition of stepping up to a factory squad not come to fruition for 2027, the doors at the outfit where he has enjoyed his best results will remain open beyond 2026.