The Qatar GP not only kicked off the 2022 MotoGP season, but also represented the return to the track of Marc Marquez, back on his Honda after the eye injury that forced him to miss the last races of the last season. The eight-time world champion appeared in good physical shape and, on a historically difficult track for him, in qualifying he managed to conquer the front row, with a third time that made him think of placing him among the favorites for the victory.
However, the Honda rider has always remained cautious, cutting himself out of the fight for success. The experience of the champion tells us that we must agree with him, because in the race he did not go beyond the fifth position, unable from the second half to keep up with the leaders: “The race distance was one of the big questions. Obviously I was tired, but like everyone else. The important thing, however, is that I didn’t feel any pain. Today four riders were faster than us, before the race I was a bit optimistic because I thought the pace was a bit slower, instead it was a very fast race ”.
Tire management was crucial, Marquez opted for a pair of soft tires, while the winning strategy was that of Enea Bastianini, who mounted an average at the rear. Marc had tried it in the warm up by mounting it on the front, but the crash made him give up: “The pace was incredible and I didn’t have the speed, I was struggling in particular with the front. Anyway, that’s something we already knew before the race. In fact, in the warmup we tried the average on the front, but I had a small crash. I preferred to choose a tire that we knew, because I had had some warnings. I pushed, I tried 100%, but when I saw that it was not possible and I had some difficult moments, I gave up and finished in fifth position. It was a good race ”.
If you only look at the positions, from third to fifth place is a step back. However, the race was good for Marc, considering not only that Lusail has historically been a track not in favor of his driving style, but also that the eight-time world champion is driving a totally revamped RC213V: “We are discovering several things with this new bike, it is also true that since we started the first tests we have improved. We didn’t make too many changes here because it was the first race and I just wanted to be focused on the race. In Mandalika we will continue the process of adapting the bike to my riding style, because it is a big change but the potential is there. The way of riding the bike is different, but the potential is there. It is also true that Lusail is a particular track ”.
“There were two factors here,” explains Marquez, going into detail. “Confidence at the front is not the best at the moment. I struggle a little to understand. In practice you know that if you crash it’s one thing, but in the race you can’t do what you want. I fell this morning. Another factor is that here in Qatar I have always suffered with the front and this time it was no different. The front was the same for everyone, I’m adapting well but even so I struggle a little. It was a solid race, not the best, but a good one ”.
On the other hand, the one who seems to have adapted quite well to the new Honda is Pol Espargaro, in the lead for most of the race and constantly ahead of his teammate in this first weekend of the season: “I never looked at the data, but Pol drove better than me. for the whole weekend. Times were coming easier for him. It seems that he has less difficulty in braking the bike when entering corners and he uses the rear brake a lot, which I don’t do, quite the contrary. I lose it. Since he has this bike he has been riding very well. It is good to have a reference in the garage, but we are in the first race and we will analyze everything ”.
The hero of the day, however, is Enea Bastianini, who achieved his first success in MotoGP with the Gresini team’s GP21, making his debut in the premier class. Bestia triumphed in the name of Fausto, confirming his enormous potential and starting 2022 on the right foot. For Marquez, Bastianini will be a rider to keep an eye on: “Bastianini was easy to understand, but the KTM is the bike I understand the least. In one lap he was fast, in another he was slow but came out of the corners very fast. Behind Binder I didn’t understand, but he has a good engine, he stopped the bike with the rear, it seems that he will be fast in other races as well. We are at the first race, which is always special, especially here in Qatar. The results here are always different, last year the Yamahas were very fast, then during the year they weren’t. But I saw that Bastianini and Pol were fast and I think they will be contenders this year ”.
Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda team
Photo by: Akhil Puthiyedath
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