The hurdles Marquez faces next in his Portugal MotoGP return

Quite a lot has happened in the 265 days since Marc Marquez’s aborted comeback at the Andalusian Grand Prix last July following his first surgery on the arm he broke in the Spanish GP. Yet when the six-time MotoGP world champion took to the Algarve International Circuit on Friday for the first time in nine months, it was almost as if he’d never been away.

Conditions were slightly iffy for FP1, overnight rain leaving the Portimao track damp in places – ideal conditions for a recovering rider to be sent back to hospital. But that didn’t stop Marquez getting on with the reacquaintance of his Honda and ended the morning third.

And in the afternoon, after several aborted attempts, he produced a 1m40.339s lap on soft tyres good enough to lift him to sixth – doing so in typical Marquez fashion by having a big save at Turn 7 on his final attempt.

“I mean, it was a great day, a great feeling and honestly speaking I go out on the first run – the track was not so good - but immediately I felt good on the bike,” Marquez said to the media on Friday. “Then in the morning, in terms of feeling I felt better than in the afternoon because I was fresh. The arm was fresh and I had power. Then already in the afternoon I struggled a little bit more to warm up the arm and I start to feel the arm was a little bit more tired.

“Apart from that, we are in a much better situation than what we expected before the weekend. I don’t know how because I don’t understand what’s going on. But just I’m riding the bike, in the afternoon I felt a little bit the bike. I’m just riding the bike, trying to follow my way. The lap times are coming; it’s not the most important thing, but they are coming in a good way.”

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Marquez may have been surprised by his form, but he was seemingly the only one.

“He clearly knows how to ride a MotoGP bike and it is normal that he is going that fast,” reigning world champion Joan Mir said. “I'm not surprised by anything, because of everything he has done, the only thing I expect from him is to be at that level.”

Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo, who was second after Friday practice, said: “I was expecting that because we know how strong he is mentally and how well he can ride the Honda, and outside it looks like he worked well. Actually, it was pretty impressive and now he can go faster and faster. So, it looks like we have exactly the same Marquez that left.”

Ducati rider Jack Miller also admitted Marquez’s beaming smile after FP2 “made me smile”, as it showed just how much the Honda rider loves what he does and further thrust into the spotlight how hellish the past nine months must have been for him.

"The most difficult thing was the braking point. Even in FP2, every time that I brake, I say ‘I will not turn, I will not turn, I will not turn’, and then the bike stops" Marc Marquez

Marquez isn’t alien to the Algarve track, having ridden the RC213V-S track bike at the venue in a private test last month. But the difference between that and a full-blooded MotoGP prototype is unquantifiable. So, it was only natural for Marquez to struggle in some areas, particularly under braking.

“Honestly speaking, the most difficult thing was the braking point. Even in FP2, every time that I brake, I say ‘I will not turn, I will not turn, I will not turn’, and then the bike stops. But especially the feeling of the speed on the entry to the corner is a lot. I brake late because I know that everybody is braking there, but I don’t feel exactly that I need to brake there. But yeah, step by step with more laps, I understand.”

And it’s not just his mind that needs to readjust to riding a MotoGP bike. His save at Turn 7 at the end of FP2 was largely down to his body not doing what his brain told it on the change of direction. But even with this, instinct took over and the talent that has propelled him to so much record-shattering success in MotoGP came to the fore.

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“The thing is that the last lap was a little bit crazy, I didn’t like the last lap but I had a nice save,” he said when asked by Autosport to explain that  moment. “But it’s my riding style, I don’t know. It’s true with the new tyre I’m struggling a little bit more than with the used tyre. Used tyre the bike becomes softer, the lap times are slower and I feel much more comfortable.

“But with new tyres everything is more stiff, and specifically in that corner – I think it was Turns 6 and 7, that change of direction – my head said it was time to go in on Turn 7, but the body didn’t follow what I wanted. But then I just slid a little bit, was a save but I created the slide to finish the turn because was the last lap and I didn’t give up the lap.”

Marquez’s odds with the bookmakers for Sunday’s race were slashed after his Friday performance. It was unreasonable to expect the world of Marquez upon his return, but it was also unreasonable to expect him not to be quick. So, what he did on Friday was in many ways unsurprising, as brilliant as it was.

But Friday is just the first hurdle and Marquez faces more before lights out on Sunday afternoon. For starters, he spent all of Friday riding the bike HRC test rider and his replacement for the past nine months Stefan Bradl has been using. Marquez will start to tailor the bike back to what he is used to, but the RC213V has made small steps since he last rode it and what suited him before may not now.

Then there’s the obvious – and the main – point of his physical condition. Marquez revealed on Thursday during his monster two-and-a-half hour media headline spot that he hasn’t ridden a motorcycle since his doctors advised him against racing in the Qatar double-header. In FP2 he noticed his arm was more tired than it was in the first session and is all too aware this will only likely worsen.

“This morning I feel good, then this afternoon, the feeling was not so good on the bike, but then when I go into the box and I see that I was P6, it was a great surprise, because on the last lap, I did many mistakes, and even like this, the lap time [was good],” he said.

“I expected to be out of QP2 for example, because the feeling was not good and I feel slow. But then I was inside. So yeah, the speed is there. Everything will depend about my physical condition, because today was the first day, everything was fresh. Tomorrow, I know that because I already feel it, I will be more tired, and the muscles will struggle a little bit more.”

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Then there’s the competitive landscape Marquez returns to. The Doha GP featured the closest ever top 10 and top 15 results in MotoGP history. Now, this was largely a consequence of the field having spent so much time at the Losail track in March. But it was in line with what we saw during much of 2020.

After Friday in Portugal, Ducati looks strong with Francesco Bagnaia – who was fastest after FP2 – and Jack Miller, while Yamaha showed promising signs of its issues in low-grip conditions having disappeared with Quartararo. Meanwhile, Maverick Vinales is yet to truly show his hand after battling with a lack of grip in the afternoon he believes is related to bike set-up.

And even though the removal of the race-winning tyre from last year’s Portugal race has upset KTM, there are few on the grid doubting Miguel Oliveira being a threat again come Sunday. Suzuki also appears to have decent one-lap speed, which will almost certainly make both Mir and Alex Rins dangerous prospects in the race if they can carry that pace into qualifying.

"The most important thing is that on Sunday we will go out to race, and after such a long time [away] that is already a victory" Santi Hernandez

Marquez is ring rusty and the competitive state of the grid won’t make life any easier for him. While it can’t ever be ruled out, a strong result on Sunday will be hard for Marquez to come by. But the fact he will be on the grid at 1pm local time on Sunday, as far as Honda is concerned, is a result good enough.

“The best thing was his smile,” Marquez’s crew chief Santi Hernandez said. “What he had to do was get on the bike and do laps. Now we have to work little by little for his recovery, and we have to enjoy it. Obviously, we have seen in the past that he adapts very well and quickly to the conditions in front of him.

“But the most important thing is that on Sunday we will go out to race, and after such a long time [away] that is already a victory.”

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images