MotoGP: Marquez Returns as Quartararo Looks to Double Up

The Spanish Grand Prix one week ago proved to be one of the most action-packed and exciting MotoGP races we have seen in a while, and this weekend it will happen all over again, albeit under the title of the Andalusian Grand Prix. 

Whilst Fabio Quartararo took his first MotoGP victory last weekend, attention quickly turned from the Frenchman to Marc Marquez over the course of the last week. The Spaniard broke his humerus in the crash which ended his tremendous fight back last weekend, and that not only all but ended his hopes of racing in Jerez again this weekend, but also seriously diminished his chances of taking a fifth consecutive MotoGP World Championship, and ninth-total Grand Prix title. 

However, this is Marc Marquez. He is a man whose career is racing motorcycles, and whose passion is proving people, physics and medicine wrong. Last weekend is the perfect example of this. It should not have been possible to save the front slide he had at turn four on lap five; it then should not have been possible to go from 17th to third in 15 or so laps; and it should not have been possible to take three seconds out of the race winner during that time.

Now, Marquez is trying to prove that it is possible to race a MotoGP bike with a one-week-old broken humerus with a five-day-old plate inserted to settle it. Is it possible? Well, not for me, and also probably not for any of the people reading this article. But Marc Marquez is slightly different, not in his perceived physical capabilities, or his own perceptions of his physical capabilities, but in his mental capacity to override that in the quest of winning. 

What we saw last weekend was unnecessary. It was not necessary for Marc Marquez to recover from 17th to third, in fact it was not necessary for him to reach the podium battle at the end of the race. A top seven would have sufficed, and if he simply waited for Francesco Bagnaia’s tyre to drop off after passing Valentino Rossi for eighth, that would have been possible with very little risk. But Marquez’ aim is not just victory in the race, but also in his personal war against the sanity and mental states of his rivals, and now with the new generation of the likes of Jack Miller, Joan Mir and Fabio Quartararo, Marquez feels the need to re-establish his point: that he is the best, that nothing and no one, except himself, can stop him from winning. In fact, it took him two tries in Jerez last week to stop him from winning, such was his speed. 

This weekend is another exercise in the destruction of his rivals’ self-confidence. There is no way he can finish in the top six this weekend, or the podium and especially there is no way he can win – right? Well, yes. It is not possible to imagine how the situation could arise where a rider, even with the talent, ambition and motivation of Marc Marquez, could win one week on from breaking his right humerus. And yet, what if it happened? That would be the knock-out punch, the deciding penalty in the cup final, the nuclear bomb – it would be devastating. 

For Marc Marquez to be racing this weekend – even missing Friday practice to save his energy for the more important days later in the weekend – it means only one thing: that he feels he can win, because that is the only reason he ever turns up to a race track, or why he rides flat track. Sure, it’s fun, but if you showed him evidence that smoking 80 cigarettes a day would give him half a second he’d ask you “what about 90?” Personal health and safety is secondary when winning is the other option – and we all know Marc Marquez, he doesn’t care for second-anything. 

But let’s not forget who Marquez is up against. Fabio Quartararo was close to perfect last weekend. Watching his on-board from the race was like watching the same lap over again 25 times. When he got clear track there was nothing that could stop him. And if he gets it again this weekend it is difficult to see a different outcome. 

For his rivals, especially those riding Ducatis, this at least presents clarity: if you want to beat Fabio Quartararo, get in front of him. And yet, looking to the race last Sunday, even when presented with a Desmosedici or two in front of him, Quartararo was able to clear his path, passing both Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller in turn 13, and covering the inside on the run to turn one to ensure there was no way back for either of them. Maybe in Jerez, where the straights are short, Quartararo has discovered a way to defend from the Ducati with the Yamaha. 

Maverick Vinales’ pass on Jack Miller late on was similar to Quartararo’s, and he followed the same path as Quartararo to defend the inside on the pit straight. Vinales’ major problem seemed to be the front tyre – only he and factory Yamaha teammate Valentino Rossi used the soft compound front – and it seemed after the race that the Spaniard’s intention for this weekend is to work with the hard front to get it to work for him as it did for the two Petronas Yamaha SRT riders, Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli. 

Speaking of Morbidelli, he missed the podium last weekend only for mistakes in the final laps and that in spite of losing time being stuck behind Francesco Bagnaia who suffered in the middle of the race as the tyres started to fade. Morbidelli is still without a MotoGP podium, but his pace last weekend was strong, and if he can find a way to deal with the Ducati riders he could have a chance. 

Of course, last weekend there were three Ducati riders fighting for the podium for most of the race, and two at the end as Bagnaia dropped off and left Andrea Dovizioso and Jack Miller to fight the corner of the Bologna brand. Jack Miller had looked strong for most of the race and looked set for the podium, but arm pump in the last laps compromised his technique, which allowed Dovizioso to take advantage and his first MotoGP podium in Jerez. 

If Dovizioso were to repeat the result of last weekend at round two, it would be quite important for the championship. Jerez has never been a great circuit for Ducati, and even less so for Dovizioso, so to head to three consecutive races at circuits which suit the Ducati well off the back of two podiums would be extremely positive for the Italian’s championship chances. 

There could also be more Ducati riders in the podium fight this weekend, having been able to use the data from last weekend’s race to improve their performance for this weekend. Bagnaia, for example, now knowing the way the tyre drops and knowing how to adapt his style in that phase of the race might be able to stick around until the end. Additionally, Danilo Petrucci should be healthier having had now a week-and-a-half to recover from the neck injury he sustained in the test before last weekend’s GP. Furthermore, Johann Zarco will presumably be one of the riders to benefit most from the repetition of this weekend’s race, since the Spanish round was his first race aboard the Ducati. Now with the knowledge of how the Desmosedici responds over race distance, it will be interesting to see how much of a difference that will make for the Frenchman. 

But Yamaha and Ducati were not the only factories in the podium fight last weekend. Also there were KTM, with Pol Espargaro. In the end the Spaniard finished sixth, 6.9 seconds behind Quartararo and only a tenth behind fifth placed Morbidelli. KTM are still awaiting their first dry weather MotoGP podium, and this weekend could be a good opportunity to achieve it. 

Brad Binder impressed significantly last weekend, displaying podium pace after a mistake dropped him out of the top ten and to the back of the field. He recovered to 13th, but with a clean race the South African could be threatening the established podium contenders. 

Suzuki most likely would have challenged for the podium in much the same way as Ducati and Yamaha, if not for Alex Rins crashing and breaking his humerus on Saturday and Joan Mir crashing out at the beginning of the race on Sunday. Rins is back this weekend having not needed an operation on his arm, and been passed fit to ride. Whether he makes it to Sunday, and to the end of the race in a strong enough condition to fight for the top places, is uncertain, as it is for Marquez, but it is clear that the riders know that they cannot afford to miss or not finish races this season, since it is so short. 

Finally, Cal Crutchlow missed last weekend’s race having been declared unfit with neck trauma. He also broke his scaphoid, but an operation in the week means he is also planning to race this weekend, although like Marquez and Rins it will only be clear whether that is possible once he makes the first contact with the bike again.