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MotoGP, Marquez: "Instinct tells me to dare and take risks, but I can't"

“Before winning Honda must get on the podium. Puig is fundamental in our box. If I stayed four years it is also for him "

MotoGP: Marquez: "Instinct tells me to dare and take risks, but I can't"

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Despite the rain, his physical condition and all the risks involved, Marc Marquez guaranteed himself a place in the top ten at the end of Friday. An encouraging sign for the #93, who was eighth quickest ahead of Valentino Rossi's Yamaha.

Should it rain in the morning, Magic Marc would already have the certainty of direct access to Q1, without having to work his way through Q1. Confidence oozes from him, even if the recovery path is long.

“This is one of my standard days - the Spaniard began - I made some mistakes, made some inaccurate comments and struggled in turns 3 and 8. What can I say, we know what my situation is and there is no point getting around it. The important thing is to be in the top ten and not that far from the fastest guys”.

Marc spoke with transparency and clarity about his feelings…

“At the moment I am not at a high level and so I try to control the risk, avoiding danger. This means that I cannot find the best performance on the bike, also because due to my body I sometimes experience strange sensations. Normally, I was able to go fast without having the situation under control; now I have to have everything under control, the bike doesn't have to make aggressive movements, I have to be fluid because otherwise I get tired very quickly and in addition I don't control it well. ”.

The Honda rider is therefore trying to work step by step, avoiding taking any risks…

“When you don't have the right confidence, it's best to wait and be cautious. Today, just to give an example, I decided to wait and use slicks. If I'm not mistaken, I was the third to go out on the track with dry tyres. My instincts tell me to take risks and dare, but deep down we know what the situation is and right now it's normal to ride carefully. Within the team they know that I am very aware of our situation, that it is not our world championship, that we are in a very special situation. Alberto, Emilio and Santi tell me a lot. We cannot rule anything out, but we know where we come from, where we are and where we want to arrive ”.

Of course Marc is aware of Honda's critical moment…

"I hope to be able to stop the negative streak, but last year my brother was close to succeeding in Alcañiz and here in the wet. For example, Pol, here at Le Mans is on one of his favourite circuits, one of those where he is better. He was always fast here. Maybe he will succeed. Nakagami was also fast in Jerez, but honestly I don't see any Honda rider close to winning now. It's not an 'it could happen' thing. The first goal for Honda I think is both to get a podium and, above all, to be more consistently in the top five, to put more bikes in the top five or top eight. But I'm sure there will be Honda wins between now and the end of the year. "

In the meantime, the Yamahas and Ducati are candidates for the win in France.

“Right now, as I said, I don't see riders ready to win with the Honda. Before thinking about victory, the goal is to get to the podium, trying to be present on a regular basis in the top five. From Portimao to Jerez, the change in feeling was greater. Here it wasn't that great. It depends on the track. There is hard braking here, like in Jerez, but the changes in direction are a bit smoother there. Here all the part at the end of the straight, the last part, which is short, has a lot of changes that require a lot of force and I felt a little more limited. In the wet it was better because you need less strength. I will not be at my best here, neither at Mugello nor at Montmelò. If the pain increases, the strength decreases "

One consideration at the end of the day was about the return of Alberto Puig to the circuit…

“For sure Alberto's presence is fundamental in our working group, given that the team manager is the one who evaluates and advises the strategy, but above all he discusses on a technical level with the Japanese, in order to facilitate communication. Puig has a great deal of experience and his presence in the garage was one of the reasons why I renewed with Honda for four years. Obviously the results do not change depending on whether he is there or not, but for sure he is a person who speaks, makes himself understood, especially when there are important meetings ".

One final comment was about the August back to back in Austria…

“I didn't know about the double race in Austria. For me it is better, as I will have more time to get ready. In fact, the Finnish GP would have been held before the holidays, but instead I have more margin. For my recovery, we go day by day. We don't know if we'll be at our best in a month. Now I'm better, but here, with the damp and cold, I feel worse in general in the arm. It could be due to changes in the weather. I have a plate and this has its effect. The doctors tell me this is normal. I'm one of those riders who doesn’t like repeating circuits. I think it's not good for a world championship, but these are the circumstances. If you can save races and repeat circuits, that's the best thing. Instead of looking at which circuit is best for me, I look at the weather. Austria will be better for me later. I'll have more time to recover ”.

 

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