Marc Marquez, a caged lion at Mugello: "I have to accept these results"

Top 5 for the reigning champion on his return after recent surgeries: here’s his assessment at the end of Saturday.

One of the themes of the 2026 Italian Grand Prix is certainly the return of Marc Marquez, who missed the last GP in Barcelona. After getting through the surgical procedures on his right foot and right shoulder, there was great curiosity to see what condition he would be in at Mugello. Obviously, he’s not at 100%, but in Qualifying he was the best Ducati rider (fourth fastest) and finished fifth in the Sprint. A cannibal like him always wants to win, but he has to deal with a less-than-ideal physical situation.

The nine-time world champion spoke to DAZN at the end of the day and admitted he even went beyond his real potential at the Mugello Circuit: "Compared to yesterday I have less energy, but the important thing is that my position on the bike was better, more comfortable, a bit more consistent. I understood what I need to do, but the road is still long because I always try to be realistic. We finished fifth, but we don’t have the pace to be fifth. We simply made a good start, had a good qualifying session, and managed the race in the best way possible."

Marquez would like to be able to aim for the front, but right now he’s forced to be deeply realistic: "I’m in a phase where it’s time to celebrate when you get into Q2, it’s time to celebrate the second row, and it’s time to celebrate a top-5 finish."

The Ducati Lenovo Team rider believes there are at least six riders more competitive than him at Mugello and won’t make predictions about the result he can achieve in the long race: "We’ll see tomorrow. We’ll try to keep working. Obviously, I’m never satisfied with these results, but right now I have to accept them and stay calm. Tomorrow we’ll try to start strong and see where we are. But there are clearly the four riders who finished ahead of us, and then there are Fermín and Pecco, who in my opinion have the potential to be faster than us. But we’ll try to manage it as best we can."

Marquez emphasizes the need to keep a cool head to avoid mistakes and risky situations: "I have to go like this now, because if I get heated I can lose out. It’s true that on the first lap I got hit from all sides, but that’s how it goes. If you don’t attack, you get attacked on the first lap—it’s normal. But I set off calmly and tomorrow we’ll see if we can get a good start, get through the first laps, and find a comfortable rhythm so we can finish the race decently."

The Mugello Circuit is quite demanding physically, something that’s amplified if it’s particularly hot: "We’re at a circuit that isn’t among the best," admits Marquez. "Physically, I think everyone, whether you’re in shape or not, struggles. The point is, if you’re fitter, you can push more in those direction changes, and that’s exactly where I’m losing a bit right now."

Sunday will bring a long race to face and it will be an opportunity to better test the condition of his right arm. Today it seems difficult to imagine him fighting for the podium and he himself doesn’t even think he’s a top-5 contender, but we know Marc is used to surprising and should never be underestimated.