Marc Marquez shared his insights on Jorge Martin’s performance during the MotoGP Grand Prix of Qatar. Martin, who had been exceptional in the Sprint race, experienced a significant downturn in the main race, leading to a loss of crucial points in the championship.
Marquez, who followed Martin closely throughout the race, observed that Martin’s performance was not his usual standard. He noted, “It was difficult for me to follow the pace of those in front, so I stayed there with Martin all the time. I was practically behind him for the entire race.” Marquez commented on Martin’s struggle, saying, “It’s not that he suffered excessively, but he didn’t have much more. Simply put, when you’re not finding it, you’re not finding it. It wasn’t the usual Martin.”
Regarding the potential cause of Martin’s issues, Marquez was cautious in his assessment. He suggested that if a tire is overheated at the beginning of the race, it becomes ineffective for the remainder of the race. However, he refrained from definitively attributing Martin’s performance issues to the tire, the rider, the team, or the bike without seeing the data. Marquez emphasized the importance of tire management, indicating that a good tire can perform poorly if not handled correctly at the race’s start.
“ I did a lot of laps this year behind Martin, behind Pecco a few laps, those that lasted because they always had a very high level and went much faster than us. But there Martín was suffering, he wasn’t turning in the same way, he didn’t have the same speed, and he wasn’t accelerating compared to the Ducatis who normally accelerate quite well. What happened ? What went wrong? I don’t dare say it, but it’s clear that he lost a lot of points for the championship, ” he adds.
He still “ dares ” to show a direction… “ I don’t dare say without seeing the data if it’s the tire or what . It can be a very good tire but if you overheat it at the start of the race it is no longer useful for the whole race. It might be a bad tire, but if you take care of it at the start of the race, you’ll have more at the end .”
“ And it might be a good tire, but if you increase the pressure because you overheated it, the bike won’t perform the same either. At the start I saw that it had failed, but I don’t dare say that it was the tire, the rider, the team or the bike without knowing it . What is clear is that he has lost points and now needs to show his best version to try to win the two remaining races in Valencia. And this way we have more opportunities to make mistakes .”
Marquez’s comments reflect his expertise and understanding of the complexities of MotoGP racing, particularly the critical role of tire management. His observations also highlight the fine line between success and struggle in the highly competitive world of MotoGP.