Marc Marquez worries Ducati: "We're not title contenders

Another MotoGP weekend with two faces for Marc Marquez, who won the Sprint at Jerez but collected his second zero of the season in the main race. Starting from pole position, the Ducati rider held the lead of the pack but crashed at Turn 11 after two laps. He was thrown into the air and ended up in the gravel, fortunately without any consequences for the number 93. His younger brother’s victory made the Andalusian Sunday a little less bitter.

It’s proving to be a tricky start to the season for the reigning MotoGP champion, still without a Sunday win after four Grands Prix. He is fifth in the riders’ standings with a haul of 57 points and a 44-point gap to the provisional leader, Marco Bezzecchi. What happened? "Sometimes there’s no need to look for an explanation for crashes. I just crashed. The reason isn’t clear, but 90% of crashes are the rider’s fault, so I must have done something wrong."

Beyond the fall, Marc Marquez didn’t have the pace to aim for the win. His brother Alex had something extra right from the early stages. "When I crossed the line, I saw Alex +0.2 on the pit board, and at Turn 5 I already felt him very close. I told myself he wasn’t my rival. Today he wasn’t, because he was a step ahead of everyone, and I thought: ‘If he doesn’t pass me here, he’ll pass me on the next lap or the next corner.’ So I decided to brake without overdoing it or closing the line too much, because it was the first laps and I wanted to lose as little time as possible, since I could fight for third or fourth place."

It’s hard to make predictions about the championship and the MotoGP title chase. Bezzecchi remains firmly in the lead, but there are still 18 rounds where anything can happen. "Right now we’re not at the level or in the position to talk about the title, because we’re losing points every weekend," admitted Marc Marquez after the Jerez Grand Prix. "Every Sunday we struggle and, when that happens, it means something is missing. So we’re working to try to find a solution, because with our current level we can’t fight for the World Championship."

Regarding Aprilia’s superiority, currently first in the Constructors’ Championship and second in the overall standings: "It’s nothing new. They’ve been very fast since preseason testing, but here a Ducati won and another finished third, so that’s the situation. Let’s see if we can make a step forward in testing and be consistent, especially on Sundays, when Aprilia shows its best."

His brother Alex’s telemetry will be very useful to the nine-time world champion. But today’s MotoGP test is crucial, even more than the winter tests. It will be the only real chance to push the evolution of the Ducati Desmosedici GP26. "When another manufacturer pushes you, it’s even more important for Ducati, especially to find those small details that give you the right boost. We’ll see if we can take a step forward and, above all, we need to confirm that step at the next circuits."