Gresini names Iker Lecuona as short-term replacement for Márquez

Gresini Racing confirmed that Iker Lecuona will replace Álex Márquez at the Hungarian Grand Prix at Balaton Park on June 5–7, the eighth round of the MotoGP season. Márquez remains sidelined after a serious crash at the Catalan GP that left him with multiple injuries, including a fractured C7 vertebra. He missed Mugello and is ruled out of Balaton Park while he recovers. Lecuona will race with number 27 aboard Gresini’s Ducati Desmosedici GP26. It will be his first MotoGP start since the 2023 Qatar GP and his first grand prix on a Ducati. A former Moto2 rider who stepped up to MotoGP with KTM before moving to WorldSBK in 2022, he has 37 premier-class starts and currently sits second in the WorldSBK standings after a run of P2 finishes. Ducati test rider Michele Pirro filled in for Márquez at Mugello but was unavailable for Hungary because of a CIV commitment at Imola, so Gresini looked beyond its usual backup options. Gresini called the signing a short-term, pragmatic solution to ensure a prepared rider for the Balaton weekend while Márquez remains out.