Honda factory rider Marc Márquez came to Misano from his home country to prepare for the MotoGP test on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Spaniard tested his physical condition in particular – and convinced.
After a 100-day break, Marc Márquez returned to the Honda RC213V on Tuesday morning. He completed 39 laps and skipped the afternoon session. On Wednesday, the eight-time world champion was one of the busiest drivers in the field, as he completed another 61 laps on the 4.226 km long circuit on the Adriatic Sea. But he had to limit himself to shorter runs, otherwise he would run out of strength and hurt his body.
“It went well. I’m really happy because it was very important for me to get through the second day. Especially in the morning the feeling was better. In the afternoon I actually had some problems with the position of the arm because the muscles were exhausted,” Márquez explained in an interview. “As a result, I took on a strange attitude and got hurt. Then we stopped.”
The Spaniard, who finished 13th in the combined timesheets of both days of testing, was half a second down and was the best Honda rider, then emphasized: “Everything is according to plan. It happened just as the doctors predicted. For me it was a very good test. For Honda I tried a lot of things on the second day as well. But there is still a lot to do.”
“We drove runs of four laps each. I always warmed up for two laps and then pushed for two laps. In the last attempt I did seven laps in a row to understand where the limit was. I realized straight away that it was too much,” said the Repsol Honda star.
He has therefore not yet been able to make a decision as to whether he will drive at the Aragón GP in a week’s time. “We now have to see how my arm behaves in the next two or three days. There are two options: either the pain is there and stays there, or the pain goes away and the muscles get stronger,” he explained. “So we have to look from day to day. On Sunday or Monday it makes sense to decide if we can try in Aragón. Otherwise we have to stay calm and give the recovery some time.”
Márquez wants to start racing again as soon as possible or only when he is 100 percent fit? «To be fast and competitive, we need a better bike. Of course you have to have a certain physical level on a motorcycle. You need strength and a certain consistency. Much more on a race weekend than on a test. Here I was able to relax in the pits from time to time, but that’s not possible in a race,” the Spaniard knows. “But the best way to build muscle and gain confidence is to ride a bike. When I’m ready, I’ll race again.”
Misano Test, combined times (6th and 7th September)
1. Quartararo, Yamaha, 1:31,054 min
2. Bagnaia, Ducati, + 0.118 sec
3. Viñales, Aprilia, + 0.135
4. Bastianini, Ducati, + 0.206
5. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 0.279
6. Martin, Ducati, +0.385
7. Marini, Ducati, + 0.419
8. Oliveira, KTM, + 0.531
9. Bezzecchi, Ducati, +0.537
10. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 0.551
11. Zarco, Ducati, + 0.552
12. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +0.560
13. Marc Marquez, Honda, +0.588
14. Pol Espargaro, Honda, +0.653
15. Nakagami, Honda, +0.732
16. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,749
17. Alex Marquez, Honda, +0.810
18. Miller, Ducati, +0.873
19. Rins, Suzuki, + 0,882
20. Pirro, Ducati, + 1,016
21. Pedrosa, KTM, + 1,254
22. Raúl Fernández, KTM, + 1,292
23. Gardner, KTM, + 1,379
24. Bradl, Honda, + 1,580
25. Darryn Binder, Yamaha, + 1,766
26. Savadori, Aprilia, + 2,325
27. Aegerter, Suzuki, +2.835
28. Dovizioso, Yamaha, +3,843
Misano-Test, Session 4 (7. September):
1. Quartararo, Yamaha, 1:31,054 min
2. Vinales, Aprilia, +0.381sec
3. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +0.660
4. Nakagami, Honda, +0.732
5. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,749
6. Alex Marquez, Honda, +0.810
7. Marc Marquez, Honda, +1,273
8. Pol Espargaro, Honda, +1,648
9. Pedrosa, KTM, + 1,765
10. Bradl, Honda, +1,894
11. Savadori, Aprilia, + 2,492
12. Darryn Binder, Yamaha, + 2,851
Misano-Test, Session 3 (7. September):
1. Quartararo, Yamaha, 1:31,116 min
2. Bagnaia, Ducati, + 0.056 sec
3. Viñales, Aprilia, + 0.073
4. Bastianini, Ducati, + 0.144
5. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 0.217
6. Martin, Ducati, +0.323
7. Oliveira, KTM, + 0.469
8. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 0.489
9. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +0.498
10. Marc Marquez, Honda, +0.526
11. Zarco, Ducati, + 0.725
12. Pol Espargaro, Honda, +0.748
13. Miller, Ducati, +0.811
14. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,846
15. Pirro, Ducati, + 0.954
16. Alex Marquez, Honda, +1,044
17. Nakagami, Honda, +1.159
18. Pedrosa, KTM, + 1,192
19. Raúl Fernández, KTM, + 1,230
20. Gardner, KTM, + 1,317
21. Darryn Binder, Yamaha, + 1,736
22. Bradl, Honda, +1,921
23. Savadori, Aprilia, + 2,531