Marc Marquez : With Ducati Better Riding Alone, Honda Better in a Group..Towing?

RiderTua.com – Marc Marquez finished P2 in the sprint race in Portugal and became the fastest Ducati for the first time. In the last 4 years, the 31 year old rider has never looked like this. “Of course I’m very happy. Finishing second is the next step. My bike is good, I feel good and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s race (Sunday),” he said.

But Marquez will not be a dominator if he is satisfied with 2nd place. “I tend to analyze everything. This time I made a crucial mistake in qualifying. The crash put me back on the third row of the grid, so finishing in first place or at least second place could have happened. My mistake was activating the rear ride height device too early,” said Gresini Ducati rider.

Marc Marquez: With a Ducati it’s better to go alone, but with a Honda it’s better in a group

Marc Marquez further explained that it was 100 percent his fault because he activated the rear ride height device while pulling on the gas. He also said he couldn’t explain why he lowered the rear ride height device so quickly. The fact is that the buttons on the Honda are in different positions, but this cannot be used as an excuse.

“I made a serious mistake. Hopefully it won’t happen again. The most important thing is that we were fast today, much faster than in Qatar. If we can overtake, it makes the race easier,” he said with a laugh.

Even though he started from 8th position, Baby Alien had the opportunity to win. “My first lap was very good. And I was right behind Pecco when he was leading, but then I made a mistake at Turn 5. Maybe that’s what cost us the win,” explained Marquez.

In his third race with Ducati, Marc Marquez has become the fastest Ducati rider in the Portuguese sprint. If you look at the data, it shows that he is the fastest rider on a circuit that has more left turns. “Unfortunately, most of the track leads to the right. But since I was on Honda, I have known that I like left corners. On the other hand, fast right corners are my weakness which I have to improve on Ducati,” he explained.

The fact that Marquez managed to overtake Jorge Martin in the sprint at the corner where he crashed yesterday (Friday) was the result of quick learning. He said he had analyzed the mistakes and raced better on Saturday. But he still has to iron out some things in his racing style. Otherwise, he risks falling or failing to perform an overtaking maneuver.

Marquez also found a big difference compared to last year with the Honda bike. “With the Ducati I was better riding alone, on the Honda I was stronger in the group. But behind Jorge Martin I learned how to minimize wasting less time at the end of corners. Today I already reached the limit with the soft tire towards the end, but tomorrow we “I will race with medium tires which are more durable… But Martin also rode very strongly, including when braking. My advantage today was that I was more consistent than him towards the end, which was also caused by tire wear,” concluded his older brother and teammate. That Alex Marquez.