Marc Marquez has lived through some very difficult days. For the umpteenth time in the past two years. But the worst moment seems to be behind us. Last week, when the Cervera rider was at home to recover from the diplopia problem (double vision) generated by the Mandalika Warm-Up incident, his brother Alex had said from Argentina that he had never seen him so low on level. moral.
Fortunately, the inspection visit he underwent on Monday showed that the double vision was now out of date, so the eight-time world champion had the opportunity to do a short test on a Honda CBR600 in Alcarras, before setting off on the road. to Austin, a track on which he won 7 of the 8 MotoGP races. Even if there would have been a chance to race in Argentina at risk, for Marc, being in Texas seems to be a real relief.
“Let’s say it was a difficult week, but I’m lucky because the problem I had with my sight created less problems for me than last time. I was close to going to Argentina, but I wasn’t motivated enough to take the risk. I talked to the doctors, so I preferred to stay at home to relax and start training again in the best way. This week I had another visit and the view was fine, so I tried to get on the bike. Let’s just say that I’m not at my best. of my conditions, but we will try to have a good weekend “, said Marquez during the conference that opened the Grand Prix of the Americas.
Mandalika’s accident was probably one of the worst of his career, but Marc revealed that his memories are very clouded. And this perhaps could also be a small advantage to regain the feeling.
“Honestly, I don’t remember much about the accident. Let’s say I remember what I saw in the videos, not what I felt at that moment. The Indonesian Grand Prix, however, was one of the worst of my career. I crashed many times, I did not understand many of these crashes, also because I did a highside with a new tire at the rear. This is the past anyway and now it is time to reconsolidate confidence. However, more than the accident, it is It was difficult to deal with what happened the week after. But now I’m here and that’s the most important thing. “
After the great discussions that have taken place in recent weeks between Honda and Michelin regarding the rear carcass chosen for the race weekend, different from the one used in the February tests, Marquez has tried not to throw more fuel on the fire when it is was asked if this may have affected his accident.
“The last crash in Indonesia was heavy and during the whole weekend we had a lot of problems with the rear. We were putting a lot of weight on the rear, but then when we put on the new tire it was pushing a lot on the front and for that reason I crashed in qualifying “.
“For the warm-up we tried to make a small change to try to understand, but it was the problem all weekend and I crashed at the worst point, and at a point that I would not have expected. I was lucky because, ok, I had the vision problem, but my physique was fine. So even though I missed that race and Argentina, I feel lucky for that accident. The reason I think was the different carcass on the rear: not we have adapted well or we have not changed the set-up properly “.
Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
During the conference, # 93 also said he still had to pass the last visit to be declared “fit”, even though he clearly considers it a proforma: “I have medical check-up at 1:30 pm. But of course if I am here I will see you. , because you either see or you don’t see. You can’t squint to see better. I’ve already tested on a motorcycle in Alcarras and it wasn’t a problem. We’ll see how it goes over the weekend. “
Regarding the possibility of a new episode of diplopia happening, he didn’t turn around too much and admitted that the doctor actually told him that it will be a kind of sword of Damocles that will weigh on his head for the rest of his career.
“This is already the second time I have vision problems in six months. I asked my doctor what percentage of it could happen again. Unfortunately he told me that the impact was violent, but that I would have the same risk this one. weekend, in a year or two, because when I take certain shots, it creates this problem. It’s one of my weak points, but I’m here to run. I can’t think of not falling, because I know there is a risk . But it’s my passion, so I’m here to run, not to think about injuries. “
It has a very favorable tradition at this track, having been practically unbeatable in Austin for years. Given the situation, however, his primary goal for this weekend is to try to rebuild his confidence on the RC213V.
“Win? Obviously it is possible, but let’s say it is not the best way to approach this weekend. We come from Indonesia, which was very difficult, and I started training again only a few days ago at a normal pace. That’s why I don’t think about win the race, but consolidate and rebuild my confidence. Compared to Qatar, on a physical level I feel a little better, but on the level of confidence I feel much worse, because Mandalika’s was not an easy weekend and it created me another injury related to sight, so this scares me. Apart from that, the championship is still open, but it is not our target for the Grand Prix of the Americas. “
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