MotoGP, Melandri: “Dovizioso on Marquez’s Honda? Nothing surprises me anymore”

In answering some of the most interesting questions received from his fans on Instagram, DAZN MotoGP commentator Marco Melandri touched on several hot topics, starting with Marc Marquez’s tricky situation following a third operation.

The return of the eight-time champion

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Sooner or later Marc Marquez will return to the track after undergoing three surgical procedures to reduce his fracture and related complications. But what kind of a return will it be? Melandri commented: “The situation he’s in is really difficult, but the desire to get back on the bike will push him to work every day like never before. It won’t be easy. As well as not riding for a year, there are very few tests in MotoGP now. He’ll have little time to regain confidence with the bike, his body and everything else”.

As it waits to see what kind of recovery time Marc will need, what will the Repsol Honda team do, considering the season is set to start on 28 March in Qatar? The factory team might opt to field Stefan Bradl again, or hire someone else, like Andrea Dovizioso for example: “Anything could happen, there are any number of possibilities. Nothing surprises me anymore. I just hope it all turns out for the best”.

MotoGP, Honda at a juncture: who will replace Marc Marquez?

No regrets

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Melandri also spoke about his rivalry with Valentino Rossi, underlining: “I’m not jealous of him, the numbers speak for themselves. But when I was second, I was the first of the losers, while when he did that he was vice-champion. I wouldn’t swap my life with his”.

Over his long career, one track always stood out: “Phillip Island, where I won in four different classes, in 125 cc, 250 cc, in MotoGP and in Superbike, it’s my track”.

Lastly, he commented on the situation involving Andrea Iannone, suspended for four years following the anti-doping case: “The fact is that he tested positive in an anti-doping test. We’ve never seen a four-year ban, it’s always been two in other sports. Food contamination was the only possible defence. The anti-doping regulation states that the athlete is nevertheless responsible for what is found in their analyses”.

Translated by Heather Watson

Marc Marquez undergoes third surgery: the operation took 8 hours