For the second race in a row, Marc Márquez got off the bike and chose not to race. He did it at the Sachsenring last Sunday, after accumulating five falls and three injuries, and he repeated it yesterday in Assen, affected by a debilitating fracture of the second rib. The Catalan put his foot on the ground twice in a row, an unprecedented fact in his long career, an unequivocal sign that the eight-time world champion is not well. Neither physically nor mentally. Márquez is forced to stop. How much time?
At the very least, Cerverín gets off the bike until August 4, coinciding with the summer break. “In just four months I’ve had a lot of injuries and this month and a half [without racing] feels like a ring on my finger. I need to stop, to recover physically and mentally, because I am in one of the worst moments of my career”, commented the 93, who informed in the early hours of the morning that he would not run in Assen.
“I had a bad night, after the Sprint I was sad and in pain. I suffered it at night. In the morning I went to the medical center to tell them that I didn’t want to run, they saw that the rib fracture had moved a little and that it was time to rest”, recounted Márquez.
To the refusal to run was added the “not fit” from the MotoGP medical manager, Dr. Ángel Charte, who after examining him did not allow him to go on track. “The rib fracture had increased and moved further up, with the risk it entails, because it can affect the parietal pleura and give rise to respiratory processes, pneumothorax… I decided not to run because of an implacable medical decision, not of another nature”.
So, by getting off the bike, Marquez saved himself another ordeal with the Honda, a futile effort, a mediocre result coming in 17th and, with such distrust, a high risk of falling that would have only exacerbated the crisis
“It is one of the worst moments in the mental sphere”, he admitted on Saturday, and he repeated it yesterday. After making “one of the best pre-seasons”, fully recovered physically from the fourth operation on his arm, the Repsol Honda rider started the World Cup on a bad footing: accident in Portugal, fracture of the right thumb and penalty, and three races of low (Argentina, Austin and Jerez). He reappeared at Le Mans and crashed again in the race, as at Mugello. And again on the ground at Sachsenring – 5 falls and down on Sunday – and in Assen.
In short, Marc has only been able to compete in four of the eight Grands Prix and has suffered 14 crashes. His confidence is minimal.
“I already said that on a professional level it is one of the hardest times, but it is compensated by the staff, it is what saves me. It’s the only thing I can do to turn the situation around. I am in one of my best moments, calmer and happier, with the support of my family, my brother, my partner, my manager and the team around me. It balances the balance and will surely give me the strength to keep pushing. Let’s see if we can pick up a different inertia at Silverstone”, hopes Marc.
Regarding the future at Honda, Márquez leaves the door open: “They taught me not to make decisions on the spur of the moment; I need this vacation, to be calm at home, to reflect, and at Silverstone to get back on the bike and see if the situation changes or not.” Despite the fact that he sent a warning to Honda: “On Saturday I raced with the same bike as in Portimao, because things have been arriving that have not worked, and this is where the people with responsibility have to make decisions”.
The head of the team, Alberto Puig, also referred to Márquez’s future at Honda, with a significant: “Honda is not a company that wants to have people who are not happy”.
