Gotta disagree. Dovi has been the difference, full stop (no pun). Even more so in these rain tire conditions (where neither competed on this year's ongoing tire manipulation). You have an aero package on 'all' the bikes now; why is it an advantage for only Ducati? Each bike is set up to its strengths. Santi had a pre-race interview where he outlines setting up Marc's RCV'S 'advantage' to be strong and stable on the brakes specific for the track, in this case Motegi; where we can't overstate the knowledge Honda has in advance for this event. Dovi beat Marc on the 'brakes' to execute the winning pass. Dovi beat Marquez at a Honda track (understatement). Dovi won that race almost single handedly on rider vs rider, zero to no Ducati advantage, factoring in the Honda advantage. In addition, if the stopping element you attribute to Dovi's Ducati was a pivotal factor, then you must also factor in the fuel conservation disadvantage it must require. More wind resistance requires more sustained power, therefore, when Dovi was in fuel conservation mode for swathes of the race distance, Marquez had an advantage during these periods. This means Dovi not only was the more precise rider, but he was superior in managing the race.
I'm not sure why you still hang on to skepticism regarding Dovi frankly. I understand your general sentiment that Ducati was/is a liability for Dovi's push to be a classic 'contender', but Dovi had already shown strong results and potential for wins and podiums two years now, though it was masked by Iannone taking him out and several issues with the overall package, not the least being the winglets ban. With 6 races to go, I put up a graphic from BeIN Sport that showed over an 18 race period spanning 2016-17 that Dovi would gave been the champion, the point it illustrates is this: Dovi is in fact a championship contender, even on a 'Ducati'. Moreover, though the TV coverage doesn’t show battles down the order, when you watch the timing screen whilst watching the race, one gets a better sense of what's happening with the 'non-important' riders. Dovi has historically battled for position with regularity when he finds himself close to others on track, his lack of tenacity and talent has been grossly misjudged. It's also a conclusion based on parity not ability. I really noticed this when he was teammates with Nicky. (Btw, I recommend watching the timing screen while watching the race, one can learn a lot from it, often far more from what's happening on TV which has an obsession with showing us the fat facial reaction of individuals in the garage.) Timing screens give you a better idea how racers are managing over the race distance, you can see sectors that riders struggle or excel, a lesson I learned from being a bar fly in the AMA paddock (which I know you knew but writing this for benefit of those reading our exchange).
Some make the conclusion that because Marc saves crashes that it confirms his alien status, I don't get this logic. How about not making the mistake that must then be corrected? I say this because if you look at the two duels between Dovi and Marc, Dovi was by far the more precise rider. Precision requires more skill and self discipline, it's one reason why Lorenzo's style was under appreciated. I still laugh when people accuse Marc of willfully not passing Lorenzo at Valencia 15. That was one of the best race performances by Lorenzo I've seen, every lap was run like a qualifying attack. Dovi didn’t have to stand-up Marc, nor block pass, nor overshoot wildly. Add to this that the Ducati is not known for its agility, it makes Dovi's precision all the more praiseworthy. Of course Marc is a great rider, his last lap in the rain to gap Petrucci a second for tge win was awesome, but let's also put it in perspective, it was against Petrucci (who btw, also has that Ducati aero package). To my point, because Marc employs a spectacular wild style we misjudge other's tenacity, in this case Dovi.
Regarding your logic to lean towards a ban of the aero package because it provides some kind of advantage to Ducati (which I dispute below) should we ban other elements of grand prix because certain manufacturers have designed better? It's a question that leads to a Pandora's box for discussion. This reminds me of the proposed desmodromic ban. Well then, let's ban V4s for L4s, or seemless transmissions before others designed theirs, on the premise that if the design advantages one manufacturer over the other it's unfair. Consider, when it's done for performance fixing, there is some merit to this notion of manipulated parity because Dorna's rolling rule book has often been a mechanism to frustrate Ducati. I don't get your logic here to lean towards a aero ban, they all have aero packages now, why is Ducatis' deemed arbitrarily to be the most effective? Is it? They haven't won a championship with it, nor most wins for races since it's introduction. Whatever positive effect from the aero pack it offers Ducati, it's become a way to hang on to the coattails of the perennial Japanese dominance.
Edit: the aero package has also mercifully masked the unpredictability of the front Michelin.
If you live in a glass house don't throw rocks.