Marc Marquez's former crew chief reveals: "I told him to leave"

Santi Hernandez has been Marc Marquez’s crew chief since his move to MotoGP in 2013. Together they made history with the Honda brand until 2023. Then the champion’s injury and the subsequent switch to Ducati split their paths. Today the Spanish engineer works alongside Joan Mir, dreaming that one day his beloved superstar might return to finish his career...

In DAZN’s documentary “Volver” (Return), Santi Hernandez retraces some of the moments lived alongside Marc Marquez. "It’s not easy to see him suffer after the weekend. But it’s true that you have to stay calm. You have to set aside the professional side. You have to be a friend. And at that moment you have to step in and say ‘enough.’ It’s not worth risking again on Sunday. Risk what? Try to finish seventh? Try to do what? Enough. It’s not worth it."

First the crash at Jerez in 2020, then four surgeries on his right arm, with the trip to the USA as a last lifeline. Once back on the RC213V, Marc Marquez discovered that the problem was no longer him. In the 2022–2023 MotoGP biennium, no wins, barely two podiums, and the desire to change grew to dispel any doubts about his abilities.

Santi Hernandez confided in Marquez. "I told him: ‘You’re not the one who’s finished. You have to leave. Right now, we’re not giving you the tools to recover what you want, that happiness, that joy, the fun on the bike. It’s no longer about winning the World Championship. You want to enjoy it again because it’s what you love. Right now, you get to the race weekend and you’re not having fun... At this moment, we don’t have the tools. I’m sorry’."

Marc decided to leave Honda and gamble on Gresini Ducati. Saying goodbye to a massive contract with the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer, and moving to a satellite team. "Is it a risky bet? Yes. I mean, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll win again tomorrow. But it guarantees you’ll understand that you’re not the problem," said Santi Hernandez. "Without thinking it could hurt me, because Marc was leaving and our paths were separating. And professionally, if I had been selfish, well, maybe I would have acted differently."

In the 2023 Valencia MotoGP test Marc Marquez completed his first laps on the Desmosedici, took off his helmet, and smiled. An image captured by the cameras and broadcast around the world. His friend and former crew chief Hernandez saw it too. "That smile when he took off the helmet was a bit like: ‘A weight has been lifted off my shoulders, I wasn’t wrong.’ Later he might have won or he might have done worse. But you see him there and you say: ‘That’s it, Marc got what he wanted’." And in 2025 came first place in the standings and the ninth world title.