Marc Márquez begins a new phase of his career in MotoGP this year with Gresini, riding a Ducati Desmosedici GP23. The rider wants to feel competitive again after facing many adversities in recent years, but he is cautious and knows it will be a gradual process, going against expectations that even place him as a title contender.
The Spanish said in a press conference: ‘It is true that expectations are quite high, but I know what I have been through in these last four years, I know where I come from, I know where I intend to go, but I need time, and without haste. I do not intend to arrive here and win from the beginning because that would be a huge mistake. Especially because in the last two years I was not able to win a single race. So, first of all, I need to create a base. I arrive at a constructor where there are two/three riders – in particular Pecco [Bagnaia], [Jorge] Martín, [Enea] Bastianini – who are riding this super fast bike, they know it quite well. And I need to learn from them. I try to learn and try to adapt my riding style to them‘.
That said, Márquez acknowledged that there is a natural decline in performance with advancing age in athletes, and he will have to learn from the younger ones: ‘We must not forget that every athlete has their moment and then begins to decline. And then in that decline you need to work even harder to stay afloat. But young riders like Fabio [Quartararo] in his first year with Petronas, now Pedro [Acosta], Pecco, Martín, who are riding fast. So, I need to learn from the younger riders and try to maintain that level for as long as possible‘.
It is this break and other questions that Márquez wants to see answered in 2024, a year in which he aims to be competitive again – which does not necessarily mean being a champion or fighting for the desired results from the start: ‘If I start to break? I will understand this year. Last year I was suffering, but still I was the first of Honda. For seven years I won six championships, one year I was third. In 2020 my life changed and since then it has been a nightmare, it has been four very difficult years. And now this year I intend to answer several of my questions. For that reason I need time; I don’t need to answer all the questions in the first race. I need time, step by step, as I did in the pre-season. If someday I finish in 14th, there is no panic. What I want is just to feel competitive again; feeling competitive does not mean winning the championship; it means fighting for top five/six positions. And this is what I want, but not right in the first race – I need time to do it, you can’t start building a house from the roof’‘.
The rider from Cervera also said: ‘First of all, I need to focus on myself and then if I can improve, if I can smile in the helmet, enjoy on the track, I will have more chances to have a good bike next year. But in the end… when I made the decision it was not difficult to understand what my goal is; my goal is to try to feel competitive again. If I feel competitive I will smile and then I will have the motivation to strive and continue‘.
