MotoGP Jerez: Marquez says his Honda bike still 'missing something'
MotoGP championship leader Marc Marquez believes he is still "missing something" with his Honda bike, despite having scored comfortable back-to-back wins in Austin and Jerez
On the back of a dominant win from pole at COTA, Marquez charged through from fifth to record his second premier-class Spanish GP win, establishing a 12-point buffer in the standings over nearest rival Johann Zarco.
But having crashed in FP2, FP4 and Sunday warm-up, Marquez says he will use Monday's MotoGP test at Jerez to work on the front end of his Honda.
"Like we see this weekend, I struggle a little bit," Marquez admitted. "I was so comfortable but we are missing something in the front, and I want to try something tomorrow, because I crash three times.
"Still I'm missing something and I want to understand well."
Marquez said the Spanish GP was "not a race about speed", but a race where being "precise" and making "the correct decision in every lap" proved key.
"I was clever in the beginning to overtake the riders, because [it] was so difficult, and then I realised that was nearly impossible to overtake [Jorge] Lorenzo," Marquez said.
"He was braking so late, exiting so well from the corners, but then I was a little bit passionate, and then when I saw his tyres start to drop, I say 'okay, now it's time to lead the race and open a gap'."
Having passed Lorenzo for the lead, Marquez managed to break away, but not before catching a big slide at the Turn 12 right-hander - where gravel had been chucked onto the racing line by the crashing Marc VDS Honda of Tom Luthi.
"I don't know how I was [still] on the bike," he said. "We arrive there around 220, 240 [km/h] more or less, and when I saw many stones on the track, was too late.
"And then both wheels slide, but I was able to stay on the bike."
MotoGP Jerez: Marquez wins, Pedrosa and Ducatis suffer big crash
Crutchlow: Marquez Jerez MotoGP win not as easy if Hondas the same
Why Honda and Yamaha have been left behind in MotoGP's new era
The once all-conquering Japanese manufacturers are going through a difficult period in MotoGP this season. With Suzuki quitting, Honda struggling to get near the podium and Yamaha only enjoying success courtesy of Fabio Quartararo, Japanese manufacturers have been left in the dust by their European counterparts. Key paddock figures explain why.
Who is Valentino Rossi’s newest MotoGP star?
Valentino Rossi’s protégés stole the show at Assen as Francesco Bagnaia stormed to victory to arrest a recent barren run. But it was the rider in second, on Bagnaia’s old bike, who had all eyes on him. Securing his and the VR46 team’s first MotoGP podium, Marco Bezzecchi has all the characteristics that made his mentor special
How Quartararo is evoking an absent MotoGP great in 2022
OPINION: Fabio Quartararo has seized control of the 2022 MotoGP world standings after another dominant victory as his nearest rivals faltered. And he is very much heading towards a second championship echoing how the dominator of the last decade achieved much of his success
The human importance of Marquez’s latest enforced MotoGP absence
OPINION: Marc Marquez will likely sit out the remainder of the 2022 MotoGP season to undergo a fourth major operation on the right arm he badly broke in 2020. It is hoped it will return him to his brilliant best after a tough start to the season without a podium to his name. But it’s the human victory that will far outweigh any future on-track success he may go on to have
Why Ducati holds all the power in its MotoGP rider dilemma
OPINION: The French Grand Prix looks to have made Ducati’s decision on its factory team line-up simpler, as Enea Bastianini stormed to his third win of the campaign and Jorge Martin crashed out for a fifth time in 2022. But, as Ducati suggests to Autosport, it remains in the strongest position in a wild rider market
The seismic aftershock left by Suzuki's decision to leave MotoGP
Suzuki's sudden decision to leave the MotoGP World Championship at the end of the season has acted as a stirring element in a market that had already erupted. Autosport analyses what this means for the grid going into 2023
How the real Ducati began to emerge in MotoGP’s Spanish GP
Ducati’s 2022 MotoGP bike has had a tough start to life and the expected early-season title charge from Francesco Bagnaia did not materialise. But the Spanish Grand Prix signalled a turning point for both the GP22 and Bagnaia, as the 2021 runner-up belatedly got his season underway after a straight fight with Fabio Quartararo
How Honda's praise for its 2022 MotoGP bike has turned into doubt
In a little over two months, Honda has gone from setting the pace in MotoGP testing with its new RC213V prototype to being at a crossroads - caused by the discrepancy in its riders' feedback. After a Portuguese GP that underwhelmed, serious questions are now being asked of Honda in 2022