One of the biggest talking points of the season so far has been Marquez vs Bagnaia, or more how many expected to see more of it. We’ve had flashes of that tantalising prospect – Francesco Bagnaia’s Ducati Lenovo Team machine has thrown down with the #93 whenever he’s had the chance, most notably in Mugello – but it’s been a tough season for the #63 so far, based on his own track record of winning two of the last three MotoGP championships and only missing out on the triple at the finale.
Ahead of the Hungarian GP, that was one topic Marquez was asked about by MotoGP broadcast partner DAZN, and his answers are more than worth translating.
“It’s difficult to explain and difficult to understand because, for example, on Friday in Austria he was the rider with the best pace and then as the weekend went on he went backwards,” states the #93. “In MotoGP it’s like this. When you lose a bit of confidence with the bike, you start losing half a tenth in the braking zone and there are four or five braking zones and then that becomes two or three tenths at the end of a lap. With this, you go into a spiral of less confidence.
“That’s why last year I was repeating so many times that I had to gain confidence. When you gain confidence in yourself you can try different things, you ride more freely and that is maybe what’s happening to Pecco. A lot of things are piling up for him, he’s more stiff on the bike and that makes him go slower, but I’m sure that him and Ducati will find the way, because I see the way they work. He hasn’t forgotten how to ride a motorbike because there are sessions where he is going very fast.”
The next question from DAZN puts Marquez on the spot: ‘So it’s not the Marquez effect?’
“No, I don’t think so,” replies the #93. “In the end I work in my garage, I give my 100%, but…” Smile. “I can’t tell you. I can’t tell you because I’ve always finished above my teammates, so I can’t tell you.”
That’s true over the course of a season – but Marquez does then take the edge off as he continues.
“When a teammate is ahead – many times I’ve made mistakes in races because my teammate was ahead, in the past when Dani was ahead. So it must be difficult and the day will come, for sure. There will be a day when my teammate beats me and they’ll say you don’t deserve this bike, someone else does. But Pecco is a two-time World Champion, he’s third in the Championship standings, he started from the front row in Austria… it’s not a drama. Sooner or later he’ll find the way.”
So after a tough Hungary – and one that Bagnaia expected to be just that given the nature of the track – next up it’s Barcelona and Misano. Can the rebuild begin at two of his best venues? Find out next weekend as MotoGP rolls out at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from the 5th to the 7th of September.