Test MotoGP, Marquez: “I rode instinctively, I had fun towards the end”

39 laps, 100 days later. This sums up Marc Marquez’s highly-awaited appearance at Misano, the Spaniard quick to surprise everyone as he got back on his bike. Lapping roughly eight tenths from the best time set this morning is a real achievement for a rider who has been out for so long, but we already knew that Marc is essentially an alien. In any case, the Spaniard can smile, despite a few difficulties.

“I wasn’t having any fun during my first exit”, begins Marc, “but lap by lap I started to get on better and enjoy myself. I still know how to ride a bike, although I’m lacking a lot of strength in my arm. Considering I hadn’t ridden for 100 days, I rode instinctively, as you don’t know exactly what you’re doing. The lap time was interesting but the important thing is that my body responded well. I’ve only been in the gym for a couple of weeks and I’ve ridden a bike only once, so I haven’t had much time to work.”

What were you saying to yourself as you went out on track?

“At first I was saying, “hold on, hold on, hold on”(he laughs), as the first braking points were tough. My body went with it though, and I felt good in the changes of direction, though they’re not particularly challenging here.

Did you have fun?

“I started to during the last exits, but honestly it was more a case of suffering than having fun. But this can happen normally too - on the first day of testing in Qatar you can find you suffer even if you’ve prepared perfectly, as these bikes are really hard work. Everyone’s very fast, but I was just concentrating on myself.”

Was it your choice to immediately test new parts or was that Honda’s “suggestion”?

"Before we started, the team and I had two plans in mind, both involving around 40 laps. The first was to lap and try to gradually improve my time, the second was to test a few new parts if I felt up to it. Already on my second exit the time was good, so I started to test a few things relating to the aerodynamics. This is the area we focused on the most, as the regulation allows us to make a final upgrade this season. Tomorrow I’ll try to give the team more info, as it’s hard to understand everything perfectly after 100 days. The positive thing is that my comments were identical to Bradl’s.”

Have the previous negative sensations disappered following the fourth surgery?

“My arm position is more natural and I felt confident. I watched a video to understand the difference with respect to the last months, particularly through the left-hand turns. Things are better through the right-handers too, but I’m lacking strength. Right now I have a good position, but only for a couple of laps and then I go back to how I was before. My arm feels tired now but there’s no pain”.

Will you be on track tomorrow?

“This afternoon I’m going to alternate between ice and physio, so that I can try to make a few more laps tomorrow. I briefly considered riding this afternoon, but I was talked out of it.”

Might we see you at Aragón?

“I’m struggling to put together four laps right now, maybe I could do ten, but if there was a race tomorrow, I couldn’t do it. I won’t be deciding right now whether to race at Aragón or not - there’s a small chance but it’s not the priority.”

Translated by Heather Watson

Test Misano, Aegerter: “How’s the MotoGP? I still need to get my head around it"