RiderTua.com – Marc Marquez crashed his Ducati for the first time at the race weekend, but the Gresini team newcomer still finished Friday practice as 3rd fastest at the Portuguese GP. Marquez ended the morning session as fastest, then ended Friday in P3 after his front lost grip at Turn 5. Marc and his team made slight changes to the bike so he could be more confident. If the rider is more confident, he can try harder. They should be heading in this direction. The crash occurred during the last attack. When Marc was behind a Honda rider, he felt better. “On Ducati I felt worse,” explained the 31 year old rider.
Marc Marquez: Portimao is Easier Than Qatar
Marc Marquez continued that he was trying to try to manage it in a different way. The rear of the bike lost grip when entering the corner. Weird crashes. He and the team need to analyze. Marc says he knows why he fell. It was his fault. When carrying out a time attack, his instincts kick in…
Marc is used to going super fast around corners with a Honda. “On this bike, we need to ride it in a different way. The potential is in other areas. I was nervous. I saw the speed was too fast. I tried to go with my instinct, by sliding. But now I know that I can’t!” added Marquez.
Marquez was the fastest in the afternoon session, then slipped back to 5th position. With just one lap remaining, Marc was second fastest, and ultimately remained in third place behind Bestia and Miller.
In the Gresini garage, smiling broadly, Marc said that he was happy to be able to enjoy the training session. Enter the top 5 and feel competitive. Marc feels consistent with his time record. The track will improve. He knew Pecco and Martin would be in front and 2 or 3 riders faster than him. But he said he enjoyed it.
Unlike in Qatar, Portimao is expected to be a big test for Marc Marquez because he has never tried out a Ducati here. But he avoided it and said Portugal was easier than Qatar. Because in Qatar he fought harder. Marc rode, and said conservatively… but when a rider doesn’t have confidence, you can’t push yourself.
“Here, the confidence is better. Crew chief Frankie Carchedi understands my riding style better. I understand the bike better. I understand what I need on this bike to be fast. This helps improve the confidence and the times, as well be fast,” added Baby Alien.
Marquez gave himself an 8 out of 10, and a 9 with no crashes for his Friday in Portimao. He was pushing his bike hard, but all the riders were also on the gas pol. According to Marc, practice is one of the most stressful weekends. Because riders have to work on weekends, they cannot crash their first bike. Marc felt he needed to do three time attacks to be in the top 10. “And mentally, according to him, it was very stressful,” concluded the rider from Cervera, Spain.
