Despite the fact that he is forced to out of Portimao this weekend due to concussion, Marc Marquez has undoubtedly been gaining momentum for four Grands Prix. Two victories are to his credit and he is the one who scored the most points in the period, far ahead of Bagnaia and Quartararo, the first two in the championship. In the race, since his return in April to Portimao, a track he will return to this weekend, he has spared no effort, as shown by the total of 32 positions gained in 14 meetings. But nothing is simple, and he really suffers. He talks about it frankly and it's quite touching.
Marc Marquez will remain forever marked by his injury contracted during his violent fall in Jerez in July 2020. The management of this right arm, operated on three times, is also not for nothing in what happens to the eight-time World Champion who recognizes willingly to have since learned humility and respect for his body. Even if he seems to come back to the forefront, the latter regularly calls him to order and imposes his law on him. He goes with it, whereas before, he liked to bend everything that came before him.
As a result, everything that has happened since then is approached in a different way than before. He says this about the Gazzetta Dello Sport : " In Austin, I felt like I had won a World Championship. Before, we experienced victories as if they were routine. Now we celebrate, because we don't know when the next success will come. It's more special ". An uncertainty which is now his constant companion: “ the return was long and very difficult. And firstly because of this discomfort of not knowing what was going to happen, of not having it under control » confides the Spaniard who continues: “ all this uncertainty has caused me this uneasy feeling. Seeing my physical limits was a disappointment ».
« I would have liked to come back like after the other injuries, feel annoyed for a few races, then continue progressing. Instead, I saw that one Grand Prix was going well, but the next one we were regressing and without knowing why. All this weighed on me psychologically ».
Marc Marquez: “ I had to swallow my pride«
A discomfort that is still not easy to get rid of: “ I don't drive the way I want. I try to ride acceptably, feel good, crash and understand why. Today I make rookie mistakes. Sometimes I change position on the bike without realizing it because I'm tired. After all, I have never spent as many hours in physiotherapy as this year.” Marquez admits: “It was all very frustrating at first. And it also made me fall more, because I wanted to go more than I could. I had to swallow my pride ».
He also adds: “ after the Grands Prix I sleep badly, for two or three days and especially after the race. For the rest it's fine. I was one of those who slept right away, but from the injury until this summer I woke up three, four or five times a night, uncomfortable, I changed positions, I put a pillow under my arm to rest... ».
He ends by alluding to what could happen in 2024, the year his contract with Honda : " there have been a lot of people wondering why I'm still at HRC, why I haven't changed teams. But I am also linked to feelings. It's not something stupid. To others you are a number, but I don't feel like that here. It's very difficult to find in the competition ».
