The Portuguese Grand Prix therefore marked the return of Marc Marquez to MotoGP. Nine months of convalescence have necessarily reduced the man's ability to control the beast that is the RC213V but they have also anchored the champion a little more in his convictions as a pilot. His performance in Portimao was masterful and rich in emotion, his spontaneous tears released among his people revealing the effort made and the trials endured to get there. HRC Director Tetsuhiro Kuwata pays tribute to him.
The result has always been presented as anecdotal by Honda, because the main thing was that Marc Marquez returns to competition and regains his bearings on the RC213V. But all the same, qualifying sixth and finishing seventh was taxing. Portuguese Grand Prix on the merciless route of Portimao is a performance worth noting. “ It was a special weekend for Honda, with the return of Marc ", confirmed Tetsuhiro Kuwata. " We were so happy that Marc was there for the first time this year and we had no doubts about his approach to the race. He managed his first Grand Prix in nine months. His team and everyone involved did a good job and did the right thing ».
« Marc's strategy was to try to get a good start and save his strength for the end of the race. We knew it would be a very long race for him after such a long period without competition. », added the head of the HRC. “ He struggled at the start and tried to stay at the top, but he certainly felt tired and finished seventh. These are nine points in the championship which will always be very useful. He did an excellent job, an immense effort over 25 laps. We are so proud of him ».
Tetsuhiro Kuwata: “We know how difficult it was for him”
The Japanese continues: “ we saw Marc again on the bike, it was his and our main objective in recent months. This is the most positive thing of the weekend and maybe the whole year so far ". Kuwata insists. “ He did a great job, he started from sixth place and finished seventh, he only lost 13 seconds to the winner. We know how difficult it was for him. And we know how important this weekend is for him, the team, for Honda and the MotoGP fans ».
The director of Honda Racing Corporation does not forget his other drivers: “ Alex Márquez's result was also positive. After two difficult races he returned to the top 10. The fact that Taka Nakagami was able to finish the race after his crash on Friday was also gratifying. He fought like a warrior and scored points ».
He ends on Pol Espargaro : " unfortunately, Pol's failure is the downside. His goal was to get a good start and get a similar place to Qatar, where he had the pace of the leaders. But after five laps we had a technical problem, so he couldn't show his progress on our bike ».
MotoGP Portugal J3: classification
Credit classification motogp.com
