MotoGP – Marc Marquez does not know when he will return … –

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Marc Marquez does not know when he will return…

MotoGP - Marc Marquez does not know when he will return ... -

Big absent from this crazy MotoGP 2020 season, Marc Marquez watches motorcycle races on his sofa … As the world championship arrives in Barcelona near his home, the Repsol Honda rider engages in a long question-and-answer session with his team. Video interview.

Injured in the first MotoGP 2020 race, Marc Marquez is chomping at the bit and watching the MotoGP MotoGP races on TV, like everyone else … Pursuing his rehabilitation, he has just returned to cycling and running to stay in physical shape , but don’t venture to give a due date…

Marc, how are you ?

Marc Marquez: Physically I’m fine, even though I’m still far from my normal level. Last week I started running and cycling again. On the cardio side, legs and left arm, my condition is pretty good but I still have a lot of progress to make for my right arm. I can’t wait to resume a more intense workout at the gym, but for now you have to stick to the program and be patient. Mentally, it was difficult at first because I had nothing to do at home … The days and even the hours were very, very long! Now we have a plan for each day with two physiotherapy sessions followed by an indoor workout with my trainer. I work my left arm, my legs and the cardio so the mind is much better. The time when I suffer the most is during the race weekends because I watch the race and all the practice sessions on TV and it’s not easy … other than that, you can say that I’m happy now because I feel like I’ve made some progress.

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Last week you were training with shoulder and arm protection, it’s still the case ?

Marc Marquez: Yes, we used different types of protection. At first I had some on the upper arm and it was completely rigid. Then, step by step, we used that carbon protection that you saw on social media that went from elbow to shoulder. And now in normal life I don’t use anything intended for training. When I cycle, I still use this carbon protection because it fixes the bone and the arm a little better. Now I am starting to forget about the protections and hope that next week we will already be able to remove the protection.

How do you feel now that you have resumed training ?

Marc Marquez: As soon as I started running again I felt good and started to see improvements, with the bike too. The hardest part is the right arm muscle, but it’s better than I thought. The muscle is still there, it works well. All movements are OK. With my physio Carlos, who lives with me in my house, we will start working hard taking the right steps at the right time.

Did you miss training ?

Marc Marquez: Yes, especially the first two weeks, but what I miss the most is being on a motorbike … I hope I can get back to riding a mini motorbike or something like that soon, but for now you just have to respect the process and the doctors’ schedules. It’s when you start to feel ready that it gets the most dangerous I just gotta try to figure out what my body is telling me.

After running last week many fans said you were already really fast !

Marc Marquez: I was surprised because normally my pace is 3’50 per kilometer and there I was running in 4’10 per kilometer, so it was a good pace. The next day, I was destroyed! My legs were completely empty, but during the week I ran three times, went cycling once and it looks like the base is still there. So from a physical point of view I feel ready to come back, but on the arm in particular still not.

During the last race in Misano, it was the first time that the Repsol Honda team was so close to the front lines. What do you think ?

Marc Marquez: I think the Repsol Honda team is in a difficult situation. Of course, I feel like I’m important there and I think we can get a lot of good results, but when you have a rookie on the other side of the box and I’m out of the first race, you can feel a little lost. It’s okay, a beginner has a process and my teammate, although he’s also my brother of course, has a good process. Tuesday’s test in Misano was very important because they found something and from there Nakagami and my brother Alex took a big step forward. , I think this is a good result for them. I can’t wait to come back as soon as possible to help the team, but at the moment I’m just helping them from outside.

You think Alex clicked ?

Marc Marquez: He is learning. It is important for beginners to have two races in a row on the same circuit. It’s a huge help, because the hardest thing in MotoGP is getting to a track and trying to sort everything out on the bike. Alex will arrive in Montmelo on the Catalunya circuit and he will start the process over again but we will see if he has made any progress. To progress is simply to move from 8th to 12th place. From there, it’s about trying to learn, seeing where we can improve and take another step forward..

It’s more difficult for a beginner this year, as the gap between the first and the 20th is only a second ?

Marc Marquez: It’s difficult for a beginner, but it is also difficult for everyone. The times are really tight, in a second there are 17 or 18 riders, it’s something incredible because I think the level in MotoGP is really consistent now. It’s good for the pilots because in the end the last improvement comes from them. It’s a difficult season for everyone, but especially for a beginner because there are a lot of very close races. It’s strange because when you ride on a weekend and then come home, the body can figure out how to improve. While here everything is going very fast, too fast for a rookie. And we don’t have any tests, they did a one day test in Misano while normally during a season we have four or five day tests which help a lot..

By staying at home, you became Alex’s advisor ?

Marc Marquez: I try to help him. On Thursday when they have the tire allowance he sends me the picture and I try to give some advice on what happened last year etc. But then we have as a rule that he works with his team. We have to be professional. If he’s in any doubt about the riding style or something like that, he calls me, but I never call him. He works with his team and he has Alberto, who also has a lot of experience, and Emilio. But of course every day we have two, sometimes three phone calls.

Honda initially estimated that you had two or three months of absence. Where are we now ?

Marc Marquez: Three months is a lot! When I was with the doctors, we tried to understand and listen to different opinions, different doctors and they said about three months. At first it’s a shock for a pilot, but now I’m starting to feel the progress of my body. Every day, every week I feel something different, unlike the first three weeks when I didn’t feel any improvement. When I will get back on my handlebars I don’t know, but I am getting closer and closer and that is the most important. I know we are going in the right direction. I don’t know if I’ll be back on my bike in a month, in two weeks or in two months. It’s something my body will tell me.

In the meantime, you watch the races at home, it must be super strange for you ?

Marc Marquez: This is the most difficult! Watching the races at home is the hardest thing because you would love to be there. When I see it’s so close, with many different winners only having an 84 point lead after so many races, it motivates me even more to come back. But in the end, timing is timing … It seems strange that after seven races I’m only 84 points behind the leader when I’m at zero! It’s a weird season and it seems like no one makes a big difference to the rest.

There are only seven races left but the championship is still very open !

Marc Marquez: Yes it’s strange, it’s like nobody wants to win! It’s hard to understand, but when you’re a pilot you can understand it a little. It’s one thing to be a driver who if he wins finds it fantastic and incredible, but when you’re the driver who needs to win then something changes and we have a lot more doubts, because we don’t know what ‘you have to attack or defend yourself … We know it when we come from second, third or fourth place and we have someone in front: we have nothing to lose, we are content to attack and we ride with more confidence because you don’t have much to lose. But when you are on top and you have to win, doubts start to appear in the mind and in the body and it becomes more difficult.

It is no longer just two pilots who fight but many official and satellite motorcycles. It’s complex this year !

Marc Marquez: Yes, it’s good for MotoGP and for show. A satellite team now has an official motorcycle, so it can win many races. This is good because a satellite team can have a good goal for the season or for a race and for the sponsors it is much better.

In Austria, you mentioned in an interview with DAZN that your favorites would be Dovi and Quartararo. Is it always the same ?

Marc Marquez: It’s hard to say, it’s true that in Austria I mentioned Quartararo or Dovizioso but, honestly, I expected more from them. Especially from Quartararo because he won the first two races with an incredible level and now I don’t know what is going on he is struggling a lot even in one of his strong points, qualifying practice. Dovizioso is consistent, he is there, but he needs more speed if he is to win the title. We also see that Viñales is there, that Mir is there and we have eight or nine drivers under 25 points so it will be interesting to see the end of the season. And yes, I’ll try to live the show from the inside !

For your home race this weekend in Barcelona, you will be home biting your nails ?

Marc Marquez: MotoGP will be only an hour from my house … Yes it will be weird, but you know, it’s a weird situation. This is the first time I have had this experience in my career. For an athlete, whatever the sport, we spend 15 years riding to the limit and then a year this risk exists. We will try to come back as soon as possible, the motivation is still there.

Since 2013 you have won six titles but today it is difficult for Honda. A lot of people take advantage of this mishap to criticize, saying that the bike is not easy and that it is not the right strategy. What do you think ?

Marc Marquez: I have a lot of time now to read a lot of things, but in the end if you look at the last ten years, Honda had a perfect strategy. Why ? Because it’s the team that has won the most titles, the most team titles and the most constructors’ championships. I think Honda has been doing a great job all these years. Sometimes it happens, all builders can struggle for a year. We look forward to improving the situation for the next year as I feel like a member of Honda and I feel it is my responsibility to be there to bring them to the top. For me, Honda’s strategy means that you can suffer for a year, but over the last ten years they have done more than other manufacturers.

Does a MotoGP have to be an easy bike, as we sometimes hear ?

Marc Marquez: It is clear that a MotoGP motorcycle remains a MotoGP motorcycle. Each has a different character and riders have to adapt to the bike. Honda has had this philosophy for many years in the 500cc and MotoGP categories. For example, when I speak with Doohan or Criville, their philosophy is the same. Honda has a good bike but you have to be 100% in good shape, you have to push it to its limits but when you are comfortable with it, you can be very fast. Then when I read "no, the bike is only made for Marquez style and blah blah blah", that’s wrong. We have three official bikes on the track (last year it was me, Lorenzo and Crutchlow) and they all say the same thing. It’s different if a rider is faster or slower, but I’m the first to want a bike that is both faster and easier, because it will be easier for me too! But it’s a competition bike and in the last race, for example, they finished 6th with Nakagami and 7th with a rookie, Alex. So it’s a good bike that has potential, but to fully understand it you have to fall several times, if you know what I mean.

What do you think of the Portimao circuit which will host the final ?

Marc Marquez: Portimao will be an interesting circuit to end the season. I hope to be there and I hope to ride there with MotoGP, because I tested a Moto2 there already in 2012. It was a long time ago, but I remember the circuit and it was very pleasant. Lots of ups and downs, following the natural course of the terrain, it was really cool and a lot of fun. I hope I can be there and end the season in a nice way…

Finally, a message to send to all your fans ?

Marc Marquez: I just want to say thank you, especially to the whole Repsol Honda team and all the fans. I have received many, many great messages. I have often been asked about the date of my return, but I do not know when I will return. Hope to come back as soon as possible. I have the impression that it won’t be very long any more, so that’s nice too. We’ll see, but thank you for continuing to support me and support Honda. And don’t worry: we’ll be back to the top! "

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