Marc Marquez: Very good test, wait and see for Aragon...

Marc Marquez moved a step closer to a MotoGP race return at Aragon by increasing his laps and lowering his best time during the final day of the Misano test.
Marc Marquez, Misano test
Marc Marquez, Misano test

Returning to a Repsol Honda for the first time since May, when he underwent another round of invasive right-arm surgery, Marquez warned he might be too sore to even ride on the second day of testing.

Instead, after stopping early on Tuesday with 39 laps, Marquez upped his tally to 61 Wednesday laps.

In the process, the Spaniard knocked 0.753s from his fastest lap to finish 13th on the timesheets, as the top Honda rider and just 0.588s from world champion Fabio Quartararo.

But while the eight-time world champion’s speed was never in serious doubt, physical endurance is his biggest enemy.

Remote video URL

 

Misano MotoGP Test Results - Wednesday lap times (FINAL)

“I’m very happy because definitely on the second day the feeling was better, especially in the morning,” Marquez said.

“In the afternoon I was struggling a bit more with the arm position because the muscles were empty. Then I started to do some strange positions and some pain appeared, but then we stopped.

“It was in the plan, it’s exactly what the doctors and the physio told me would happen.

“But for me it was a very good test, I was able to try many things for Honda, but there’s still a lot of work to do.”

Indeed, Marquez’s last and longest run at the test, 7 laps, was only a quarter of a MotoGP race distance.

“[Most of the day] I did 4 lap runs, because every time I went out, I needed 1-2 laps to warm the body [and arm] and then start to push. So I was warming 2 laps, pushing 2 laps.

“On the last run I did 7 laps in a row, just to understand where the limit was. I already understood that was too much and I stopped. But it was better than we expected.”

Marc Marquez, Misano test
Marc Marquez, Misano test

Will Marc Marquez race at Aragon?

“Now the plan is try to understand over these next 2-3 days how the arm reacts. Because sometimes after a big effort you have two options: The pain is there and stays there. Or [the pain] drops and [you can] just grow a lot the muscle.

“That’s what we need to understand. I think around Sunday or Monday I will understand if it makes sense to try in Aragon or be patient.”

Marquez added: “A race distance is a race distance and the intensity you ride with in a race weekend is not the same as a test.

“Here I was able to relax in the box, a race weekend is completely different.

“But the best way to grow the muscles and to get the confidence again is to be on the bike. So as soon as I feel ready, I will race...”

Marquez had three different RC213Vs available on the final day, two versions of this year's machine plus what appeared to be more of an (all black) prototype.

The 29-year-old also tried out some new aerodynamics, his injury absence meaning Marquez is one of the few riders still with one fairing update to use this season.

The new Kalex aluminium swingarm, seen on test rider Stefan Bradl's bike on day one, was also fitted to one of Marquez's machines.

Read More

Subscribe to our MotoGP Newsletter

Get the latest MotoGP news, exclusives, interviews and promotions from the paddock direct to your inbox