It's funny to say after a five-race stretch that is surely the most dominant by any rider in MotoGP history, but the mid-2024 idea that Ducati didn't need Marc Marquez on the bike this year hasn't been disproven - rather just made to look a little ridiculous.
Were Marquez absent from the grid this year - or had he returned to Honda or something - Ducati would still be preparing to celebrate the 2025 title. Maybe with Alex Marquez, maybe with Pecco Bagnaia, maybe with a kept-on Jorge Martin, who potentially would've dominated, though to nowhere near the same extent as Marc is.
Of course, this ignores the flourish with which Marc has been winning, the unmistakable PR benefit of helping one of the greatest riders of all time return to where he belongs, and the sheer engineering joy felt by Gigi Dall'Igna in getting a full audit of his Desmosedici by putting The Guy Who Is Good At Everything on it.
But even had it chosen Martin over Marquez for the factory seat in mid-2024, it feels like Ducati was always going to have this year's riders' title.
And what Brno drove home instead is that a brave move to leave Martin jilted in order to ensure Marquez was put front and centre of the programme, as many dividends as it has already paid in 2025, is infinitely more important for 2026.
The results of the Ducati GP25s in the Czech Grand Prix showed "that Marc made a huge difference compared to the others", an impressively earnest Bagnaia acknowledged.
"Because our bike in this track was a bit difficult to ride. I worked a lot to arrive closer to him, but he was making the difference. It's true that for the first time our bike wasn't the strongest - but he was. We need to understand."
Bagnaia also reiterated his dissatisfaction with the GP25. "Comparing my feeling, compared to last year we lost something. And the others, they have improved compared to last year."
Dall'Igna admitted, too, speaking to Sky Sports Italy, that "the others have really raised their game, so I think it's time to get back to work rather than think about holidays" as MotoGP heads for its summer break.
With Bagnaia struggling as always to counter-attack after being overtaken in the early laps, with Fabio Di Giannantonio completely at sea after being put in a difficult track position, with Alex Marquez losing his head a little when trying to work his way past Joan Mir, Ducati's often reliable squad of riders found themselves tripped up by the unique challenge of Brno.
The fact it was a track returning to the calendar after five years away, and with Friday practice made irrelevant by weather, meant Ducati couldn't press its usual data-gathering advantage built up by years with a large roster of competitive bikes. And there was also a suspicion that the resurfaced Brno was providing the Desmosedicis with too much grip.
Said Marquez himself of whether he was proud to be one of just two Ducati riders in the top 10 on Sunday: "I feel happier when Alex finishes second and Pecco third - or opposite, to not create any [drama]! But the brother's the brother.
"For me we're a team and I want the best for Ducati, the more Ducatis are in front means the bike is working in a perfect way.
"It's true that this weekend we struggled a bit more because the fact that the grip was super high [the rear] pushed a lot the front tyre. But we didn't have time [to sort it out with the crews].
"So the rider must adapt to these conditions."
He adapted, all right. He always, always does. He is uniquely dominant also because conditions that are supposed to make him 'slow' don't really exist.
Ducati's rivals sent it some increasingly ominous signals at Brno, but also in the rounds before. Marco Bezzecchi is on song with an Aprilia that suddenly looks even better than the pre-season had hinted. Pedro Acosta is getting back into the groove with the KTM. Jorge Martin's back now and showed at Brno that chances are high he will be a problem very soon.
Without Marc Marquez, all of them could really dream for 2026. All of them could ramp up the pressure, hold Ducati's feet to the fire to urgently push through changes, lest its 2026 title push sinks with a still-misfiring Bagnaia and its era of dominance ends even before the regulation change.
Ducati will seek to improve anyway, of course, but it doesn't need to feel rushed or gamble. Its insurance policy is Marc Marquez, the greatest rider on the grid, who just needs to see out this season healthy to not only waltz to the title but start 2026 as the favourite no matter what Aprilia, KTM, Honda or Yamaha do.
This year, he's a luxury, a rider who enables Ducati not just to win but to run up the score.
Next year, he looks set to be absolutely essential.
