- Iker Lecuona replaces injured Alex Marquez at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
- The WorldSBK star secures a temporary MotoGP return with Gresini.
- Balaton Park hosts the rider’s first premier-class race since 2023.
Iker Lecuona will return to MotoGP at this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, with Gresini confirming him as the stand-in for the still-recovering Alex Marquez at Balaton Park.
Gresini has called up Lecuona to replace Marquez for the eighth round of the MotoGP season, giving the Spanish rider his first premier-class race start since 2023.
Lecuona will ride for BK8 Gresini Racing at Balaton Park after Marquez was ruled out while continuing his recovery from the serious Catalan Grand Prix crash on 17 May. He will swap his Aruba.it Racing Ducati WorldSBK programme for a MotoGP outing.
It is now a confirmed replacement move, driven by Marquez’s injury situation and Gresini’s immediate need to fill the seat in Hungary.
On a new spec Ducati
Marquez remains absent after a high-speed accident that left Gresini managing both rider welfare and the team’s competitiveness. Plus, Lecuona arrives with genuine momentum: he is second in the WorldSBK 2026 riders’ standings and has recorded 15 podium finishes this season.
So he is not stepping in from nowhere; he is getting a chance to measure himself again against the MotoGP grid, on a Ducati Desmosedici GP26, at a circuit where the series races from 5-7 June.
Lecuona last raced in MotoGP in 2023 and previously competed in the class with KTM before moving into WorldSBK. His best MotoGP finish remains sixth at the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix, while his WorldSBK form has rebuilt his profile after spells with Honda and then Ducati.
Balaton Park is another factor. The Hungarian Grand Prix at the 4.08km circuit near Lake Balaton is scheduled over 27 laps. It is still a relatively new venue in top-level motorcycle racing terms, which makes track knowledge, adaptation and tyre feel especially important for any stand-in.
Stability and rider care
Marquez’s absence also keeps Gresini in a holding pattern. The team needs points and stability, but the bigger priority is avoiding any rush around a rider recovering from a significant crash.
Lecuona’s immediate task is simple: give Gresini a clean, useful weekend and gather speed without overreaching. This is not a guaranteed audition for a full-time MotoGP comeback, but a strong weekend would inevitably make people look again at his value across Ducati’s wider racing structure.
For Marquez, the next meaningful update will be medical and team-led. Until Gresini confirms a return date, his comeback should be treated as recovery-dependent rather than timetable-driven.
