After the dizzying comeback that he carried out two weeks ago in Austin, where he climbed from last place to sixth, the Spaniard woke up in Portugal and dominated the first day of free practice, on a day marked by rain. After him finished Pol Espargaró, his neighbor in the HRC workshop.
Márquez relativized that first place in the time table, especially if we take into account that the weather forecast does not predict rain with a view to Sunday.
Apart from that good result, the sensations of the #93 were good on top of the RC213V, and, although for many it sounds strange, the weather played on his side this time because it gave him a break given his physical condition, which is not yet the optimum.
“In wet conditions, the physical demand is less. From the first laps I already felt more or less well. If we take into account that it won’t rain on Sunday, surely we shouldn’t take today too seriously”.
“But it is always better to finish in front than to do it tenth or 15th. But the rush would be greater if it had been dry,” summarized Márquez , who is still looking for the formula to make a prototype his own, completely different from the previous ones that he knew.
“After the winter and the preseason, you already know the bike. But this bike is carried differently from the previous Hondas, in another direction. For some riders this bike may be easier or more natural, but I have to take it to my terrain” , stressed the multi-champion of the world.
“Honda and the team are working. In Austin we incorporate some things, and others will arrive for the test after Jerez. You have your own style of riding, your strong or weak points. What you can do is adapt,” reflected Márquez, before adding: “I don’t ride like in 2019, but it’s not because of the bike, but because of my physique”.
In one of the aspects in which both Márquez and Espargaró, his partner, agree, is to highlight the step forward that the 2022 motorcycle has taken in terms of safety. After this Friday, that impression is also valid for when the track is wet: “This bike, in wet conditions, is just as fast but safer”.
