The MotoGP Malaysian Grand Prix did not prove favorable for Marc Márquez in the Honda crisis, in what is his penultimate appointment with the Japanese brand before moving to Ducati with Gresini. The eight-time world champion had already suffered a setback on Friday, failing to get into Q2, and his feelings were confirmed again on Saturday, when he suffered a double crash, equaling his record of 27 crashes in a single season in the premier class.
The first occurred in Q1. After having to follow Franco Morbidelli, with the Italian however visibly moving away with a gesture thus not giving the tow, Marquez had no choice but to do the lap alone. Halfway through his timed lap, he crashed while attempting to pass Augusto Fernandez, leaving him relegated to twentieth position. The second accident occurred in the sprint: after recovering several positions, he fell at turn 14, putting an end to his comeback attempt.
Despite the setback, Márquez managed to get up and finish the sprint race in twenty-first position, just ahead of Alvaro Bautista and teammate Joan Mir, who also crashed a few minutes later. At the end of the day, however, the rider from Cervera took the situation with humour, commenting that “some records” had to be broken in such a negative 2023, in which he achieved a total of 27 crashes even missing several races due to injury.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
The accident of Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team
“Some record had to be broken this year, even if it’s the accident record. This means we’re trying. Since there are only a few races left, I keep pushing. It’s the commitment to the brand. It was difficult for us to start from the 20th place obtained in qualifying. And when that happens, you have to try to recover and the tires overheat”, began the multiple champion.
“I took the bike, I finished the race and I did my job: collect data”, he continued, returning to the topic of trying to support the work of the brand with which he made his debut, despite the fact that this month he will get on the GP23 for the first time during the Valencia tests.
“In the past I could avoid falls, but this year, since we put in the new aerodynamics, I can’t. With the new aerodynamics, falls are less predictable,” he continued, explaining why his legendary saves are now less visible .
Afterwards, Márquez also explained his incident with Morbidelli in qualifying: “We had a moment with Morbidelli. I’m not sure what it meant, but these images are fun for the championship,” added Marc.
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