MotoGP, Assen J3: Sylvain Guintoli explains the seemingly incomprehensible gesture of Marc Marquez during the race

During this Dutch Grand Prix, an astonishing scene was seen between Marc Marquez seeming to make a sign to Fabio Di Giannantonio to pass him, while third place was still at stake. “For me, it’s what it looks like,” said TNT Sports’ Sylvain Guintoli, who explains…

But what went through the mind of a Marc Marquez surrendering to an adversary to give up his place at the forefront in full Dutch Grand Prix ? This unusual scene took place in the 8th round at Assen, as both drivers battled for a place on the podium. Sylvain Guintoli who was not born of the last rain thus assesses the situation…

According to Guintoli, the maneuver of Marquez could be linked to a strategy to avoid a tire pressure penalty. “ Drivers and teams must respect a minimum front tire pressure which cannot be lower than 1,8 bar for 40% of the race, " has explained Guintoli. “ The way to get front tire pressure up is to follow someone. Because this guy is going to take your clean air, and you're going to receive hot air from his motorcycle, thus increasing the temperature and pressure inside the front tire."

Marc Marquez 'played' with tire pressure to stay with GP24 and lost

Guintoli also noted that neither Di Giannantonio ni Marquez neither appeared to want to lead the pack, suggesting that both were struggling to keep their tires at the regulation pressure. “ If they did that, it means they were really at the limit, " he added.

Michael Laverty commented on crash.net on the performance of Marquez : " he thus hoped to stay in contact with the Ducati GP24s. The gap widened and he had to be creative to keep his tire in this range."

Ultimately, Marquez, pilot of Gresini, had to settle for fourth place, while By Giannantonio, of the team VR46, finished fifth. Victory went to Pecco Bagnaia, factory driver Ducati, who dominated the race.

In the general classification, Marc Marquez is now located at 51 points from the championship leader, George Martin, who finished second behind bagnaia in Assen. The tactics of Marquez, while surprising, shows how crucial tire management can be in MotoGP racing, and how innovative strategies may be necessary to stay competitive.

MotoGP, Assen: Dutch Grand Prix classification