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Austin is not a track like all the others, the Texas circuit is a kind of Frankenstein monster that evokes with its curves many other tracks scattered around the world. It is a technical track, full of pitfalls and a favorite (along with the Sachsenring) of Marc Marquez. The Spaniard on the Circuit of The Americas always produces the goods and in fact on that asphalt he has won 6 consecutive times (from 2013 to 2018), plus another success in 2021. Only in 2022, in less than optimal physical condition, he had to settle for a 6th place, while in 2019 he crashed when he was leading by a wide margin.
Team Gresini, which likes to play with movie posters, has also prepared one for the American GP with Marquez in place of Matt Damon in The Martian. The pun is on "the Martian," one of the Spanish champion's nicknames.
Carefree spirit aside,Austin is not a date like any other for Marquez, because on that track he has the first chance to win on the Ducati. In the first two GPs he has already been on the podium in the Portimao Sprint, while in the long races (including the Portuguese one, before the contact with Bagnaia) he has not been too far from the podium. CoTA is one of the wild cards he could play this season, a circuit where the rider can make a difference, especially Marc.
His stated goal when he decided to leave Honda for Ducati, even accepting the fact of being in a satellite team, is to get back to having fun, to be competitive again. The start of the season has again shown a smile on the face of the Team Gresini rider, but he is lacking that icing on the cake that he is looking for. The opportunity is there and it's coming soon; surely Marquez won't want to miss it. Ducati has already shown it can have its say in Texas: in 2022 it won with Bastianini, while last year Bagnaia, after winning the Sprint, crashed when he was leading. Everything is all in place, ready for the 'big one'.
The downside is that all his opponents know that Marquez is the favorite and beating him at 'home' is motivation. For Bagnaia certainly, who after the Portimao clash wants to make it clear again who commands in Ducati, as well as recover points in a ranking that now sees him 23 points off the top. Then there is the aforementioned Bastianini, who is running (also) for a contract renewal in the official team and that means getting results, because the standings, at the moment, are in Martin's favour. Another rider who has no intention of making life easy for Marquez.
Is the list over? Quite the contrary, because Austin always reserves surprises, and we should not forget that Rins has won twice in MotoGP on that track . The first time in 2019 with Suzuki, the last one last year with Honda. A demonstration - if any were needed - that CoTA is capable of overturning all the predictions and crumbling the certainties of the eve with ease.
Especially at a time like this, when the on-track form factor is not crystal clear. There is Aprilia which seems to be able to play in attack and KTM close to Ducati, and then there is Pedro Acosta. The enfant terrible won in Austin last year in Moto2, and such a special circuit could bring out the best in the rookie. Marquez is warned: conquering the red planet Austin will not be a walk in the park.
