The debate has always been there, and both the long-term injury of the Spaniard and the consequences that he still drags from it, have had a brutal impact on the drift of HRC .
The contrast between the winning inertia with Marc Márquez in full swing –six titles out of seven possible between 2013 and 2019– and the debacle after the injury of the rider from Cervera –one win and four podiums in a year and a half– is a difficult argument to refute . On the other hand, Alberto Puig has made it clear in recent times the capital importance of #93 in the company’s philosophy, which revolves around it. With this, the executive admits the brutal influence of the Catalan in the recent successes of Honda , even though, obviously, he does not want to emphasize the weakness of the bike.
Over the past few years, most of the competition, especially Ducati , have made it a point to point to Márquez as almost solely responsible for the golden wing constructor’s crowns. Above all, because the multi-champion was the only one capable of consistently making a difference among all the factory riders.
For Puig, anyone who had seen themselves in Honda ‘s shoes would have carried out the same strategy.
“Whoever says that Honda won just by having Marc is having a hard time. Those who say that would be delighted to have him with them on their team. The criticism comes from impotence,” the former driver tells Motorsport.com .
In his opinion, the RC213V is not yet where it needs to be, but Honda is working at full throttle to turn the situation around. “Marc was seriously injured, and that may lead us to take not just one step forward, but four. When Honda starts looking for alternatives and different paths, the difference it can make is enormous”, Puig deepens.
The importance of the current moment for the Tokyo signing is demonstrated by the presence of HRC President Shinya Wakabayashi in Misano two weeks ago. Although the gyrfalcon attended the grand prix, the main reason for his visit was to closely follow the two test days, on Tuesday and Wednesday.
