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Anyone who expected different graphics from those of 2023 on the Gresini team's Ducati with the arrival of Marc Marquez must have been disappointed. As a rough approximation it appears identical to the previous one and what stands out is only that a main sponsor worthy of a team that this year will field two riders who together have 10 world championship titles is missing.
Yep, that means no Red Bull, as was predicted several times, and not even Repsol. And we have to ask ourselves why, given that if not even the arrival of the most successful active rider brings significant sponsors to MotoGP, then we have to ask ourselves not only why, but what could bring them.
Once again, therefore - drinks manufacturers aside - the only team that manages to move big names turns out to be Ducati, the official one. And the reason is obvious: irrespective of the results, a global brand is being sold. The one of the motorbike featured in Hollywood blockbusters or in the garage of Tom Cruise and Keanu Reeves.
There is not much that can be done about it: MotoGP simply doesn't make a dent on the TV screens, and Dorna will have their work cut out to arrive, as they would like, in the USA.
After all, it's not as if two-wheeled vehicles are very popular there and remain a niche passion, but perhaps a bit of the responsibility for this, as well as Dorna, who until recently remained in lockdown when it came to the new generations, must even lie with the manufacturers that are capable of spending tens of millions of euros for the development of their current winged rocket-ships, but which do not invest a penny either in traditional communication or in new media with the result of being completely out of the radar of the new generations.
It is difficult, however, to reverse these trends: moreover the new wave of current marketing directors are currently focusing mainly on numbers, therefore on those who manage social media, i.e. the Internet giants such as Google, YouTube, Meta, without thinking (especially now with the arrival of artificial intelligence) that numbers are not everything and it is certainly not thousands of clicks per kilo that give birth to characters.
These on the other hand, and always, not just today, are not just created, but made to grow and supported by the press. The one that follows the big events and makes known the strengths, weaknesses and personalities of the sportsmen. And to talk about a reality very close to us at the moment, all you need to do is mention the phenomenon of Jannik Sinner, champion of a sport, tennis, which has good numbers but certainly not an outright record. But the characters are there: Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev. Just to name a few.
If we look at the aggregate data in tennis, we have 5.7 million viewers who enthusiastically followed the Azzurri's exploits, with an overall 28.5% share. But they were the Azzurri and we know that we Latins easily fall in love with our sportsmen.
There is no doubt, however, that there is still a lot to do from this point of view and the fact that a combination like Ducati and Marquez does not immediately catch the eye with an immediately recognizable brand is not good news. Then they will say to us, it's not true and many other beautiful flights of fancy, but the eye wants its part and, as they say in Tuscany: you don’t go very far without moneeey...
