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A brilliant start to the season for Marc Marquez on the Ducati. In his first race with the GP23 the Spaniard finished fifth just behind Bagnaia, managing to set a record lap in the race, among other things.
The number 93 can therefore consider himself to be enthusiastic about what was achieved at the start of the weekend on the Losail track.
“I can say I'm happy because I finished in front with the fastest riders – he began – but we have to be realistic because today there were four more competitive riders than me on the track. Unfortunately during the race I wore out the tyre too much and I struggled in the final part, finishing fifth."
Marc made a quick assessment of Saturday.
“In the last sector I ride by instinct because I saw I was coming super-fast and I lost a few tenths because I exaggerated too much in one corner I did Honda-style. And it’s not possible to do this. We went into a strange fight with Di Giannantonio with many overtakes in the first lap, and we lost time. But when I overtook him, I started to go in front and I felt ok.”
Riding this Ducati therefore seems like something completely different compared to the Honda.
“It’s easier. You overtake on the straight and then it’s easier. Especially you arrive into the brake points a bit closer. So, I was able to overtake two, three riders today and I was able to be in that fight. And in the race, I was able to control more myself. It’s true that I did a mistake where I predicted I could do a mistake, which was the first lap when you don’t have the confidence with the bike and you are with other riders, then you cannot attack like you want. Among other things, we also set the record lap in the race despite the tyre worn out at the end with very high temperatures."
The Spaniard then once again spoke about his decision to leave Honda.
“For me, it’s the correct decision until the end. When I took the decision I was fully convinced and I’m convinced. And what I said on Thursday, my target is to try to fight in those top six positions. Why? Because when you are fighting there you feel competitive. In this MotoGP the gaps are very small and today we saw this. Having said that, I'm happy, because I'm having fun with the bike, and in qualifying I wasn't close to anyone to set the time, arriving in Q2 alone."
Marc's path seems clear and now all that remains is to follow it.
“At the moment I still don't have complete confidence on the bike and I lack smoothness, but when you're fighting for the top positions it's fun. I knew that the first lap would be a problem, in fact I made a mistake, losing a lot of time. Afterwards I had to put a lot of pressure on the tyres to close the gap to the group in front of me and the temperature rose so much that it wore out the tyre. However, we are realistic about it."
To conclude, a comment about Aleix and a thought about Sunday.
“Aleix managed the tyres well today and he is certainly the favourite for tomorrow. Obviously it won't be easy for him on the straights against the Ducatis, but in the corners his Aprilia is very strong. We'll see what we can do for Sunday, because there are 22 laps and it’s important to manage the tyres. At the moment the situation is clear: in front of me there are two Ducatis, a KTM and an Aprilia."
