Who benefits most from Marquez's extended MotoGP absence?

On Saturday at the Styrian Grand Prix, Honda confirmed MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez's recovery from a second operation on the right arm he broke at the Spanish GP last month will go on for at least another two months.

The reigning world champion has been sidelined since the Andalusian GP and was expected to make his return to action in September for the Misano/Catalunya triple-header.

Honda put absolutely no pressure on Marquez to return for the Andalusian GP, contrary to what social media's keyboard warriors would have you believe, but not having him back for the San Marino GP is definitely cause for deep disconsolation within HRC. After five races, it's fifth in the constructors' table on 48 points and still without a podium.

The remaining races will take place at Misano, Catalunya, Le Mans, Aragon, Valencia and Algarve. The latter aside, Marquez won at all of the remaining tracks last year on his way to his sixth premier class world title.

Marquez's enforced absence from the Brno/Red Bull Ring triple-header just gone certainly left his title hopes bleeding out, but not totally dead. Had he been able to return for the San Marino GP, his gap to current championship leader Fabio Quartararo is only 70 points - some 55 points fewer than the damage the Petronas SRT rider could have dealt had his winning ways from the Jerez double-header continued.

But the reality is, for various reasons, none of the title favourites coming into the season have been able to truly capitalise on the golden opportunity afforded to them by Marquez.

Following dominant wins at the Spanish and Andalusian GPs, securing a maximum of 50 points from the first two rounds, Quartararo has only scored a further 20 points amid tough weekends at Brno (seventh) and the Red Bull Ring (eighth and 13th).

The problems at Yamaha have been well documented in recent weeks, chief amongst which being the fragile 2020 engines which have forced the Japanese marque into lowering revs after a series of mechanical failures at Jerez.

Yamaha requested to unseal its engines to fix some faulty valves, having been supplied by two different companies. Yamaha withdrew this request ahead of last week's Styrian GP, as it claimed to have been able to understand the problem further. But Yamaha riders were still some 10km/h down on power compared to the Ducatis in Austria.

Then there was the brake issues which dropped Quartararo to the back of the pack during the Austrian GP, and which forced Maverick Vinales to jump from his M1 at 140mph in the Styrian GP when they failed - although this was in part down to him ignoring Brembo's advice to run different brake material.

But generally, Yamaha riders have just struggled for form. Quartararo believes the special tyre construction for Red Bull Ring to cope with excessive heat played a small part in this, but was quick to point out that he had none of these issues one year ago when he managed third in the Austrian GP.

"Yes, of course we are a title contender, but I don't feel as confident as in Jerez because in Jerez everything was OK, everything was going so well," Quartararo said when asked by Autosport what his struggles meant for his title bid. "But [it] looks like every time we have more problems and we are struggling.

"Austria is a tough track for us, but last year I had a really nice feeling and I finished third. And it was so different to the feeling from last year."

"I don't have a good feeling in this moment because I don't feel we have the situation under control to push in some tracks" Andrea Dovizioso

Misano should be a better track, Quartararo believes. He fought with Marquez for victory there last season, and generally it's better-suited to the Yamaha. But, more as a warning to Yamaha than the press, Quartararo was keen to remind us that "the problems will remain" at Misano. A good San Marino GP should give way to a repeat in the Emilia Romagna GP, based on what happened in the Jerez double-header, but at least Quartararo won't have Marquez there to punish him for another lacklustre showing.

The same could be said of Andrea Dovizioso. Marquez's tips for the title were between Quartararo and the outgoing Ducati rider, with Dovizioso's experience a key asset to carry him forward.

But the three-time MotoGP championship runner-up has not been comfortable on the 2020 Desmosedici. Though he salvaged a third in the Spanish GP, he could only manage sixth in the second Jerez race and was only 11th - having qualified a career-worst 18th - at Ducati-friendly Brno.

Although he was able to make steps forward in braking at the Red Bull Ring to win the Austrian GP, his form dipped for the Styrian GP and he was only fourth. As a result of Quartararo's woes, Dovizioso has been able to move to within three points.

Dovizioso's biggest problem this year has come from the new construction Michelin rear tyre. He cannot get it to work with the Ducati, with its added grip meaning he can't slide the rear when cornering and has largely struggled with the rear pushing the front tyre under braking. Though he found something to fix this after Brno, the fact that the Red Bull Ring's braking zones are generally straight lines played a part in this.

From being strong in practice for the Styrian GP to struggling in qualifying and the original race prior the red flag that resulted from Vinales' Turn 1 crash, Dovizioso says he doesn't feel Ducati has its title situation "under control".

"For me, the situation in the championship is good, but when you have that feeling and you have a lot of ups and downs, you don't have control of the situation," he said. "I don't have a good feeling in this moment because I don't feel we have the situation under control to push in some tracks."

Marquez said we "cannot forget" about Vinales in the title picture. But based on current form, it is quickly getting to the point where we can. Beaten easily by Quartararo in both Jerez races, he has suffered more than Quartararo when the bike hasn't worked. A 14th at Brno, 10th in the first Austria and his Styria DNF have only cut him 22 points adrift, but if the current pattern of the season continues at Misano, there's nothing to suggest Vinales will capitalise.

The only small glimmer of hope for him is that a set-up "gamble" to something he'd "never used before" for the Styrian GP - after he dropped like a stone from pole in the first Red Bull Ring race - did work for him last Sunday. But, if the engine in the bike which slammed into the air fence and burst into flames can't be salvaged, Vinales will only have three to complete the season with, which will likely spell a pitlane start for him in the near future.

If we consider all of this, it's hard to claim any of Quartararo, Dovizioso and Vinales have really gained from Marquez's absence. If anything, they've only been cut a small bit of slack because the knock-on effect of the Honda rider being sidelined is a much more wide-open grid.

In five races, we've had four different winners in Quartararo, KTM's Brad Binder and Miguel Oliveira and Dovizioso, while there have been six others who have made it to the podium. Compared to the first five races in 2019, three riders took to the top step of the podium and only three others made it onto the other rostrum spots.

This wild 2020 form guide is a result of KTM and Suzuki taking steps forward with their machines over the winter to consistently be podium challengers, while the depth of field of either factory team or works-supported customer squad riders is the best it's ever been in MotoGP.

Marquez's absence has simply been the touch paper that has lit the bonfire and convinced more of the field that it has the chance to win now.

If you look at all those who have managed to score a podium so far, they've also either registered a DNF or a finish outside of the top 10. At the moment, there is no one consistent rider

"I think, and it's just my opinion - I think once Marquez was out, I think everyone all of a sudden felt like they could start to win races and championships," MotoGP's latest winner Oliveira said. "So I think this feeling is still floating around a little bit. This is why there is not a clear favourite for the championship fight.

"But I think also that it's quite early to define that. Hopefully in the next few races we see who is more consistently on the podium and making more points, because at the end this is going to make the difference."

But, if you look at all those who have managed to score a podium so far, they've also either registered a DNF or a finish outside of the top 10. At the moment, there is no one consistent rider.

Now, there is no real way of knowing where Marquez would fit into the 2020 equation if he was injury-free. The 2020 RC213V has proven to be even more difficult than its predecessor, and it isn't working well with the new rear tyre. The mistake during the Spanish which put Marquez into the position where he ultimately crashed is a direct result of the Honda's failings.

But Marquez managed to win the 2019 title by 151 points, finishing in the top two in all but one race. Given how inconsistent the field has been this year, it's very likely the pendulum would have swung firmly in his way had he been uninjured in his Spanish GP crash.