Marc Marquez crashes three times: "I'm not at my best yet

The MotoGP test in Thailand did not end as Marc Marquez had hoped. A crash on day 2 interrupted his race simulation, forcing him to leave the track early. Fortunately, he did not suffer any injuries and in a few days he will be ready for the first Grand Prix of 2026.

The nine-time world champion showed up in the press room even before the second day of testing at Buriram had ended. Three crashes in two days for the Ducati ace, the last at Turn 4 while completing a race simulation with the GP26. "The plan was to do the long run and finish the program, but I crashed and so I finished earlier." In terms of pure performance, Marc Marquez set the third overall time with a 1'28"836, 168 thousandths off the best lap by Marco Bezzecchi. It was also the best result for Ducati in the test, ahead of Francesco Bagnaia.

The cause of the crashes cannot be attributed to the new Desmosedici GP26. The Cervera rider takes responsibility. "It’s not the bike’s limit, it’s concentration. It’s not a problem of finding the limit. All three crashes were mistakes and a lack of concentration. When you lose concentration, you go over the limit," explained the reigning MotoGP champion. "The problem is I have this instinct to go fast. When I’m fully focused, I can control it; otherwise, speed is something I have to manage."

That slight drop in concentration was linked, as he himself admitted, to physical exhaustion. He suffered from a stomach virus over the weekend and is still recovering from a right shoulder injury. "Maybe I was too tired this afternoon to do a long run, but I tried anyway. Today I’m better than yesterday, but my body still wasn’t at its best."

Despite that, the technical assessment is positive; the Red responds to his requests. "I’m absolutely sure about what I need and how we’ll start the season. The feeling and precision were right. I was riding well." On Friday, things get serious and it’s time to start bringing home points for the standings. After the winter break, the MotoGP World Championship is about to fire up its engines again. And Marc Marquez says he’s ready to chase victory. "I’ll be ready for the fight! Testing is tougher than race weekend. Now I have three or four days to recover."