The one who speaks like this is a certain Juan Martinez who has been in the Grand Prix paddock since 1994. He currently works as a commentator for Spanish television. But he started as a suspension technician and was part of the Repsol Honda team with champions such as Doohan, Crivillé and Rossi. So he knows a priori what he's talking about...
Especially since the same Juan Martinez was chief engineer of Gibernau and Hayden, and he also participated in the Repsol Honda 125cc and 250cc projects with Alberto puig, advising Discount, Smith et Simon. After seven races, here is his analysis of the 2019 season. Which has enough to undermine the morale of Marc Marquez's opponents...
In fact, he assesses: “ we saw Marc be able to control things and show that even though he made mistakes, he would never make the same mistake twice. This is the difference between a top driver like him and the others. Those who were supposed to be his rivals are doubting themselves a little. It is true that, until the last race, the classification seemed closer, because a race without points gave Dovizioso the opportunity to stay close. There are circuits where, when the front tires are not hard enough, Marc suffers more and the races are more open, like at Mugello. But for the moment, I don't see anyone who really has everything in place to challenge his supremacy ».
And all the less since the same Marc Márquez continues to improve as the seasons go by… “ I think Marc went through some tough times in his career, and the fact that he took longer to develop when he was younger was a significant handicap that helped him work hard and not give up . Jorge's arrival on the team forced him not to lower his standards, which is most important for an elite athlete who must not fall into the trap of self-satisfaction. This year, Marc looks stronger than ever, because everything he does, he does through experience and the message sent to his rivals is devastating ».
Marc Márquez won his 48th MotoGP success in Barcelona after 115 starts in the category, ahead of his three-time MotoGP world champion teammate, Jorge Lorenzo. His victory in Catalonia was also the 74th of his Grand Prix career. He now has two victories less than Mike Hailwood (76) who occupies fourth place in the number of Grand Prix achievements, behind Ángel Nieto (90), Valentino Rossi (115) and Giacomo Agostini (122).
Finally Marc Márquez will have the ambition in Assen this weekend to become the seventh rider in history to reach the milestone of 2000 points scored in the premier category of the Grand Prix.
