29 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

Marc Márquez fight until the very end in red-hot Buriram spectacular

Fans and riders alike hardly knew which way to look during an explosive 26-lap Thai Grand Prix, the premier class putting on one of the most exciting races of the year. There were battles throughout the entire field from the moment the lights went out until the field crossed the line, the Repsol Honda Team pair featuring heavily in the action as each authored strong races.

An intense opening lap saw Marc Marquez immediately thrust into the heart of the action as the entirety of the top ten were glued together for the first five laps. Every corner there was a new challenger as the #93 battled the likes of Aleix Espargaro and a mix of Ducati riders. One of the fiercest battles would be with MotoGP World Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia, the pair duking it out for sixth place in the early part of the race.

The melee would last until the middle of race when the group began to stretch out, Marquez focusing on holding himself inside the top ten. Another battle late in the race with Fabio Quartararo gave the fans in the MM93 Grandstand something to cheer about again, audibly erupting whenever Marquez made a move. Crossing the line in seventh, a post-race penalty of Aleix Espargaro would see Marquez promoted to sixth place.

The Repsol Honda Team will now enjoy a well-earned week away from the circuit after an intense period of five races in six weeks before returning for the final push of the year. Another triple header consisting of Sepang, Qatar and Valencia will sign off the 2023 season.

Marc Márquez, 6º: “It was a really exciting race, straight away from the start there were battles and everywhere I looked in the first laps there were bikes! I had good battles with Aleix, Pecco and later Fabio – they were all hard but really fun. I was fighting really hard at the start which meant the tyre dropped a bit at the end, but then when the others started to drop, I was able to recover more. Overall the weekend was positive, we rebuilt some confidence after Mandalika and Australia so this is really positive. Now we have a week off after three busy and physical races before ending the season.”

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29 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

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22 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

Marc Márquez work for more after Australia’s first Saturday Grand Prix

Schedule changes made for a busy Saturday in Australia as the Repsol Honda Team contested practice, Qualifying and the Grand Prix all in the same day.

For the first time since 2015, a Grand Prix was held on Saturday as weather warnings forced a change of schedule on safety grounds. This made for an intense day as the MotoGP field completed practice, two Qualifying sessions and had the full length Australian Grand Prix all moved to the same day.

As the weather continued to cool from Friday, the Repsol Honda Team headed out on track for Q1 alongside a number of big names for an intense 15-minute session. Marc Marquez would time his run perfectly to enter the top two on his final flying lap, advancing through to Q2. Ultimately taking seventh on the grid with a best time of 1’28.012, the eight-time World Champion ended 0.766s off pole.

From the head of the third row, Marquez lost a little ground in the run down to Turn 1 but quickly rallied and recovered to challenge the top five. A spirited start to the race had the #93 as an early podium contender but he quickly had to switch into a more defensive posture as the competition around him increased. Gambling with the soft, the latter half of the race became about survival, and he crossed the line in 15th to collect a solitary point.

Unfortunately, the #TissotSprint has been cancelled due to weather conditions and forecast

Marc Márquez, 15^th: “Last year the soft tyre brought us the podium, this year the gamble didn’t pay off. I was hoping for a slower race, but straight away Martin was pushing hard and I knew it would be a very fast race. At the start I really enjoyed the ten or so laps with Bagnaia and Zarco as we were fighting a lot. Then I needed to change my tactic and just focus on bringing the bike home as I was suffering more with tyre life. Now we wait and see what will happen with the situation tomorrow.”

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22 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

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16 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

Double DNF for Marc Márquez at the Indonesian GP

A weekend full of complications resulted in a disappointing double DNF for Marc Marquez.

The Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika turned into a grueling affair as a third of the grid suffered falls and experienced issues. Both Repsol Honda Team riders would be unfortunate victims of the former, Marc Marquez the first to fall on lap seven and Joan Mir coming off a few laps later on lap 12. Neither rider sustained any injuries in their falls.

Marc Marquez had been running a comfortable pace inside the top ten when he fell from eighth.

There’s not long to wait for a chance of redemption, the entire paddock heading directly to Australia for Round 16 at the iconic Phillip Island Circuit.

Marc Marquez, DNF: “The weekend started in a good way but then day by day, it became more complicated. Today in the race I kept calm, I was losing a little bit of ground, but I was not panicking. The aim was to finish the race and I was riding with this in mind. Unfortunately, at one point in Turn 13 I lost the front and I couldn’t save it. A tricky crash to understand but we start thinking about Australia.”

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16 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

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04 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

Honda Racing Corporation and Marc Marquez to end collaboration early by mutual agreement

Honda Racing Corporation and Marc Marquez have mutually elected to terminate their four-year contract prematurely at the end of the 2023 MotoGP World Championship season.

With a year still remaining on the four-year contract between HRC and Marc Marquez, both parties have mutually agreed to end their collaboration upon completion of the 2023 MotoGP World Championship season. Both parties agreed it was in their best interests to each pursue other avenues in the future to best achieve their respective goals and targets.

This brings an end to 11 years of collaboration between the #93 and HRC in which they achieved six premier class World Championships, five Triple Crowns, 59 wins, 101 podiums and 64 pole positions together.

Marquez took his debut victory in the premier class aboard the Honda RC213V at the Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin, Texas in 2013 to become the youngest premier class winner and would become the youngest premier class World Champion later that year. In 2014 he defended his title and won the opening 10 consecutive races of year, going on to also claim titles in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 as an HRC rider with the Repsol Honda Team.

Both parties will continue to give their full support for the remaining rounds of the 2023 MotoGP World Championship season.

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04 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

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01 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

Marquez makes ‘romantic’ return to podium in waterlogged Japanese GP

A wet and wild race in Motegi was cut short due to the extreme conditions and fading light, Marc Marquez taking his 140th career podium and returning the Repsol Honda Team to the rostrum.

Overnight rain saw the MotoGP field discover a damp track for Warm Up as they arrived at Mobility Resort Motegi for race day. As the grid formed up for the 24-lap Japanese Grand Prix, the predicted rain began to fall and the MotoGP field shot forward on tender hooks with everyone starting on slicks. It would not last long as the majority of the field pulled into the pits at the end of the first lap. Marc Marquez showed his undeniable skill in the changing conditions as he immediately put himself into contention with the leading group.

Opting for a cautious approach as the rain began to intensify, Marquez let those ahead judge the conditions as he settled into a comfortable rhythm. With the conditions settled on completely wet, the eight-time World Champion began his attack and quickly made his way into the top five. Passing Bezzecchi on lap 11 to move into third, the #93 kept up an intense pace as he worked to eat into the lead of Bagnaia and Martin.

Conditions would worsen at this point and the red flag was displayed, ending the race. A restart was attempted but the combination of standing water and the waning light meant the result was declared and full points awarded.

Marc Marquez once again climbed onto the podium with third place, his first podium since taking second place at the Australian Grand Prix in 2021. This podium, the 140th of his career and his 101st in the premier class, moves Marc Marquez to fifth overall in terms of podium finishes across all classes. It is the 455th podium for the Repsol Honda Team in the premier class.

After two intense back-to-back races, the Repsol Honda Team will now enjoy a week off before heading to Mandalika for the Indonesian GP.

Marc Márquez, 3rd: “It feels great to return to the podium after so long away, and to do it here in Motegi, at Honda’s home, with so many fans and people from Honda here, honestly it is quite romantic. In the race it was all about understanding the wet tyres once we switched over, at the start it was quite dry so it was important to be careful to not destroy the tyre. I stayed calm and when I saw there was more water on track, I began to attack. I was feeling really good with my pace and I think we could have had an interesting end to the race, but ultimately Race Direction did a really good job and they made the right call at the right time. I want to say thank you to them and of course all of the Repsol Honda Team as well, days like today have many factors at play and my team worked really well to handle everything. This podium is what we have been looking for all year and it’s a nice boost for the last push in 2023.”

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01 Oct, 2023

Moto GP

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25 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

Marquez returns with superb podium on Sprint and authors classic comeback on Sunday

The first Indian Grand Prix will go down as a classic, and a highlight of the year for Marc Marquez showed the potential of the Honda RC213V as he put in an early podium challenge and impressive recovery.

With a belly full of fire and motivation after a return to the Sprint podium, Marquez shot off the line and immediately hooked himself to the back of the leading trio. As Martin and Bagnaia traded blows, the #93 sensed his opportunity and turned up the pace to stay with them. Unfortunately, at Turn 1 on lap five, Marquez fell but there was no waiting around an in true Marquez style, he remounted within just eight seconds and rejoined in 16th place.

From here, he cut through the field and found himself back inside the top ten by lap 14. Steady progress continued and the eight-time World Champion would take ninth at the flag, a solid result considering the fall.

The entire Repsol Honda Team now head directly to Japan for Honda’s home race at the Motegi circuit.

Marc Márquez, 9th :

“If you just looked at the final result and see ninth you wouldn’t know the whole story of our race – but to achieve what could be considered our ‘normal’ result after a crash is a positive. It was a really small crash but I was pushing very hard to stay in the slip stream of the bikes ahead, I went a bit wide and just fell. I came into this race with the motivation of the Sprint podium, so when I saw Pecco and Martin make a mistake I decided I needed to push. This led to the mistake. The most important thing was finishing the race, overall our rhythm was very close to Quartararo so I think we can be overall happy with what we have done this weekend.”

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25 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

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10 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

Marquez continues upward trajectory with best result of 2023

A ‘perfect race’ for Marc Marquez on his way to a hard fought seventh and a return to the top ten ahead of an important Monday Test.

The weekend of progress continued inside the Repsol Honda Team garage as the Gran Premio Red Bull di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini reached its climax with the 27-lap Grand Prix on Sunday. As the track temperature crept above 40°C, the MotoGP field set their sights on the challenge ahead.

From ninth on the grid, Marc Marquez made another flying start to establish himself well inside the top ten. By lap nine, he had moved himself up to sixth place where he would sit for the majority of the race as he stalked Maverick Viñales. Only in the final laps would the eight-time MotoGP World Champion be challenged, first by Miguel Oliveira and then by Raul Fernandez and Luca Marini – Marquez fending off the latter two in a fierce final lap battle.

The result is another step in the upward trajectory of Marquez and Honda’s results in recent rounds, the #93 now having taken points in three consecutive races and earning a first top-ten of the year. All involved remain unsatisfied with these results however as the Repsol Honda Team strive to return to challenging at the front of the MotoGP World Championship. Monday’s test will be another important step in this journey with the final in-season MotoGP test taking place at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.

Marc will be back on track for Monday’s MotoGP test, a chance to sample what Honda HRC engineers have been working on away from the track.

Marc Marquez, 7^th: “For me, this was the best race of the year alongside Le Mans. It’s my best Sunday of the season, I took the maximum that was available and passed our target. Our rhythm was very good until the soft rear option dropped a little bit at the end – but this is normal. In the end I was able to have some good battles with the Aprilia riders and Marini. The objective is to keep this going in the coming races. Before that we have an important test for the future, a first taste of what 2024 could hold. I’m looking forward to seeing how the bike will be with my riding style and then beginning to work with the engineers.”

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10 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

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04 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

Marc Márquez scored points at home GP

A challenging day in Barcelona saw Marc Marquez avoid a number of incidents on track, Marquez leaving with another point-scoring finish.

Sunday proved to be a dramatic day at the Catalan GP as chaos unfolded over the opening few corners, both Repsol Honda Team riders avoiding issues. With the Red Flag immediately coming out Marc Marquez and Joan Mir returned to the Repsol Honda Team garage and awaited the restart. Race distance was reduced to 23 laps as a result of the restart.

Marquez, starting 11th due to a grid penalty for Bastianini, launched well to quickly move inside the top ten. As in the Sprint on Saturday, the Repsol Honda Team rider held his own in the opening half of the race before settling into his rhythm for the remainder of the race. Quartararo would pressure the #93 for multiple laps, eventually getting past after a spirited defense from the Honda rider. Taking 13th at the line, Marquez was able to collect more points and complete another Grand Prix weekend without major incident.

The Repsol Honda Team now head directly to Misano for the penultimate European race of the season and the last in-season test before the frenetic end of season marathon begins.

Marc Marquez, 13th

“First of all, I am very glad that Pecco and all of the other riders avoided any serious injury. I saw Pecco crash on the opening lap and I immediately did everything I could to make sure I could avoid him. In the race restart I was able to gain a few positions. Then, like yesterday I was very strong at the start but then had to go into a more conservative mode in the second half of the race. In the final races I was focusing on getting the bike home. Now we start thinking about Misano.”

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04 Sep, 2023

Moto GP

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20 Aug, 2023

Moto GP

Marquez returns to the points in race of mixed fortunes for the Repsol Honda Team

A run of DNFs for Marc Marquez was finally brought to an end as he crossed the line for the Austrian Grand Prix in 12^th.

Clear skies and a blazing sun continued to rule over the Red Bull Ring as Sunday’s action at the 4.32 kilometer-long track began. With just ten quick minutes of Warm Up to start the day, attention rapidly switched to the 28-lap Grand Prix. As the lights went out, the MotoGP grid was able to avoid any serious incident into and through Turn 1 as happened in the Sprint.

Marc Marquez was able to maintain his position throughout the opening lap and began to challenge those ahead for points. The only rider running the soft rear, Marquez was able to consistently gain ground on those in front and joined the battle for the top ten before too long. With just a few laps remaining, the #93 was sitting comfortably in 12th position – just behind Bastianini and Morbidelli as he maintained his calm and calculated approach. Holding the position until the end, Marquez ends both his and the Repsol Honda Team’s luckless streak of Sunday DNFs. The result is a culmination of a revised approach to the Grand Prix weekends for Marquez and the Repsol Honda Team.

The Repsol Honda Team will now head for Barcelona and the Gran Premi de Catalunya, the first of two back-to-back races. Marquez will be aiming to continue their improvements and put in a strong weekend for the home fans.

Marc Márquez, 12º: “The result of this Grand Prix was a culmination of the new approach we are taking as in Silverstone. We are trying to understand many things with the bike and avoid falling, finally we finished a race. At one point in the race my times were quite good, but I was the only one with the soft rear. It’s good to finish a race but obviously we are aiming for more and we need to keep on working. It’s been a busy weekend here in Austria and now we see what’s possible in Montmeló.”

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20 Aug, 2023

Moto GP

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07 Aug, 2023

Moto GP

Marc Márquez endure DNF in complicated British GP

An unfortunate end to the British Grand Prix for the Repsol Honda Team who had been working to build over the course of the weekend meant they would leave unrewarded. Spits of rain in the buildup to the 20-lap race had many wondering if there was a chance of the race being declared wet. Rain would eventually arrive, sending a handful of riders into the pit in the closing stages.

Marc Marquez was able to gain several positions early in the race, despite losing his right wing due to contact on the opening lap. The eight-time World Champion worked his way to inside the top ten despite this limitation as the rain returned and the white flags came out. His charge would be short lived as contact with Enea Bastianini at Turn 12 ended the Repsol Honda Team rider’s race. Marquez escaped injury in the fall.

The entirety of the Repsol Honda Team will work to regroup and go again at the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, 18 to 20 August.

Marc Márquez – DNF

“Our race was complicated from the start as I lost my right wing when I had a small contact in the first lap. Then I crashed in an unlucky situation with Bastianini, but it was the type of crash where you don’t lose any confidence. Without one wing I was losing a lot under acceleration but at one point in the race it started to rain and I was able to make up some ground to the other riders. Aside from this, the weekend was not so bad when we look at our approach and what we were able to do in the race before the crash. We keep working, building our confidence and following our plan.

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07 Aug, 2023

Moto GP

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