Marc Marquez's second place at the Qatar Grand Prix turned out to be a tougher battle than it appeared from the outside. The reigning MotoGP champion shared a screenshot of his race data on Instagram, which showed an "unusual" heart rate in the closing stages.
The overtake on Raul Fernandez
As the weekend in Lusail came to a close, Ducati's number 93 rider strengthened his grip on the 2026 world title. He now leads his closest rival, 'Martinator', by 60 points in the standings. It was no easy ride on track, especially during Sunday's race, when he had to contend with Marco Bezzecchi. The Aprilia rival dominated the race from start to finish, and Marc Marquez knew victory was out of reach. But rather than settle, he pushed to the limit in the closing laps to overtake Raul Fernandez and secure second place. Four valuable points that could prove crucial in the MotoGP title fight.
"If you want to fight for the championship, you have to give it everything," admitted the Cervera phenomenon, who is now on the verge of claiming the tenth world title of his career. He took a risk with that overtake, fully aware of what was at stake. "By the end, I was completely exhausted, drained... You never know whether those four points will come in handy." Marc arrived in Qatar with his first match point to clinch the title, but he was unable to seal it. Even so, he leaves Qatar with a 60-point lead over Jorge Martin. At Portimao, winning the MotoGP Sprint will be enough for him to retain his title (or perhaps even less...).
Physically drained, but mentally strong
Physically tired, but mentally stronger than ever. Marquez makes no secret of the toll that three consecutive races have taken on his body. He tried to manage his energy as carefully as possible, with his arm/shoulder injury continuing to cause considerable discomfort. On Friday in Lusail, he completed just two laps, stopped, then went out for two more. He also started Sunday's warm-up later to save energy for the race.
Mentally, however, he is in excellent shape. "Mentally, I feel better than ever," Marc Marquez said. If that were not the case, "it would be impossible to ride like a racer." Yet one statistic gives pause for thought. His heart rate reached 190 bpm during the closing stages of the Lusail Grand Prix. And he admits: "It's been more than 10 years since I last reached this heart rate. In the final two laps, my heart was pounding!"
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