First objective – to have fun – achieved
“Que me quiten lo bailao”. As Marc Marquez to the broadcaster’s microphones DAZN Spain tagged Austin’s crash in Texas when he was leading the race. With that expression the eight-time world champion wanted to underline that despite the fall his state of mind was more than serene, because he slipped from the lead of the race due to a technical problem that didn’t take away his chance to have fun.
The Spanish rider left Honda accepting Ducati Gresini to get involved, to find out if he was still competitive. A successful bet that puts Marquez in the position of having already achieved what was his first personal goal for 2024, namely to demonstrate to himself that he can still compete for the top positions. “Staying at Honda would have affected my mental health – said Marquez in an interview with the US broadcaster TNT – it was a difficult decision and I didn’t listen to my heart because it was difficult to leave the team of my career, my mechanics, my technicians and my sponsors, but I told them that if I had done another year with the team I would have finished my career because my mental health would have been at risk if I had continued.”
For what concern pilots market Marc Marquez is open to every possibility and knows that to open all the doors he must go fast on the track: “The market this year will take longer than in previous seasons in my opinion – he added – Ducati has already signed Bagnaia, Yamaha Quartararo, Aprilia will soon decide who to confirm between Vinales and Espargarò. I haven’t spoken to anyone yet and I’m open to listening to everyone, but to make teams want to talk to me I have to be fast on the track. In the meantime I’m already having fun which is already an achievement for me. Another thing is to be even more competitive to fight for the title. At the moment I’m happy because I can fight for the top-5 with the best.”
