When next Friday the Honda rider puts on his suit again and puts on his helmet to take to the track in the first free practice session in Portugal, Márquez will put an end to a 265-day injury ordeal. The Catalan missed practically the entire 2020 season due to the fracture of the humerus in his right arm in the first race and has taken his return in stride until he is fully recovered.

After being rushed the first time he underwent surgery by forcing himself to get back on the bike four days after the operation, two surgeries later #93 preferred not to take any risks and to follow the deadlines indicated by the doctors.

Although the one from Cervera (Lleida) has already done two tests, in Barcelona and Portimao , with a large displacement motorcycle, his condition on the RC213V is a complete unknown. In the presentation of the Repsol team, Márquez said that “from the outset I don’t think about the title, but I’m not ruling myself out either.”

At this point, with two Grands Prix played and at least 17 more to come, the question is clear: will Marc Márquez be able to come back to win the MotoGP title in 2021? From the start, the Repsol Honda rider will find himself with a deficit of 40 points with the leader Johann Zarco and 36 with the official pair of Yamaha, Fabio Quartararo and Maverick Viñales.

The precedents invite us to think that it is possible. Of these three, the one who has never been closest to Márquez in the standings has been Viñales, who in 2017 finished at 68 points. Just that year, the Repsol Honda rider recovered the 37-point deficit he had after six races to score 105 in the next 12.

For Márquez it is not new to come back. When he won the 125cc title in 2010 , he was 33 points off the lead after the third race. In the first MotoGP race , in 2013 , Dani Pedrosa had a 30-point lead over his teammate after six races.

However, his most brutal comeback did not materialize. In 2011 , on his Moto2 debut, he came within 82 points of leader Stefan Bradl after six grands prix. Eight later he was at the top of the table with a point advantage. An eye injury cut short the match.

Precisely the last MotoGP title was also defined after a comeback, the biggest in history under the current scoring system that came in 1993. After the third grand prix, Joan Mir was 48 points behind the then leader, Quartararo. The Suzuki rider won the championship with 13 over Franco Morbidelli, while El Diablo dropped 44 in the final standings with the Spaniard.

Apart from the consolidated comebacks of Márquez, in 2013 and 2017, and Mir, last year, the one who came very close to doing an even greater feat was Valentino Rossi in 2006. After 11 grand prix he was 51 points behind the leader Nicky Hayden . In the penultimate he became the leader with 8 rent. A fall in Valencia left him at the gates of that feat.

There is a precedent that plays against Marquez. Only Geoff Duke , in 1951, and Umberto Masetti , in 1952, were champions of the premier class after failing to score points in the first two races. Then the worst results were subtracted. We will see how far Marc Márquez goes.

This is how Marc Márquez resolved all his ‘match ball’

125cc – Portuguese GP 2010

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In his third season in the World Championship, Marc Márquez was in the fight for the title all year. During a good part of the course he was behind, but he appeared in the penultimate round leading with 12 points over Nico Terol. In a historic race that was on the verge of not running when he crashed on the formation lap, he needed to get 13 points from his compatriot. He won, with a comeback included, but Terol was second and delayed the alirón.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

125cc – Valencian Community GP 2010

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Valencia arrived with 17 points and it was worth being 8th. Despite this, at the beginning of the race he got involved in the fight for victory, but finally he got out of trouble and finished 4th, certifying his first World Championship.

Photo by: Repsol Media

Moto2 – Malaysian GP 2011

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In his debut in the intermediate category, Márquez did not score points in his first three races. He was 82 points behind Bradl, but before the penultimate race he was already the leader. In Malaysia he injured his eye and was unable to run.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Moto2 – Valencian Community GP 2011

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In Cheste he was already 23 points behind Stefan Bradl. If he had been able to run he would have had a chance, but the eye injury forced him to be out. The German, despite leaving, won the title.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Moto2 – Malaysian GP 2012

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With a year of experience in the category, Márquez swept the field. Three races from the end he could close the championship. He took 53 points from Pol Espargaró and it was worth staying ahead of him. Despite the fact that the man from Granollers was only 10th, the man from Lleida left and the celebration was delayed a week.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Moto2 – Australian GP 2012

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In Phillip Island he had everything on his face. Adding 3 points was proclaimed champion. Pol Espargaró won, but Márquez finished 3rd and was proclaimed world champion.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

MotoGP – Australian GP 2013

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In his MotoGP debut, Márquez was devouring early records. The youngest champion could be produced with three races to go. An appointment marked by the obligation to enter to change motorcycles due to the duration of the tires, ended in a black flag for #93 and one more week of waiting.

Photo by: Repsol Media

MotoGP – Japan GP 2013

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Marquez’s lead dropped to 18 points over Lorenzo. He needed to get 8, but the Spaniard won and the celebration was delayed again.

Photo by: Repsol Media

MotoGP – Valencian Community GP 2013

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With an advantage of 13, a 4th place made him the youngest champion in history in his first season in MotoGP. Lorenzo slowed down the race to put riders in the middle, but finally Márquez was able to be 3rd and certify the title.

Photo by: Repsol Media

MotoGP – Japanese GP 2014

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After a perfect start to the season that started with 10 consecutive wins, a series of falls delayed the wing to Japan, but on his first attempt he succeeded. He needed to stay ahead of Pedrosa and not give up more than 3 points to Rossi. He finished 2nd, after Lorenzo and became the youngest two-time MotoGP champion.

Photo by: Red Bull GmbH and GEPA pictures GmbH

MotoGP – Japanese GP 2016

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After being defeated in 2015, a year later he learned his lesson. Again in Japan and at the first opportunity he did. He was obliged to win and that Rossi did not add more than two points. The Italian left and the Honda man did his part, adding the fifth title of his career.

Photo by: Repsol Media

MotoGP – Malaysian GP 2017

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Dovizioso made things more difficult for him than expected, but in the penultimate race of the year Márquez could already be champion. With the Italian at 33 points, if he did not yield more than 8, he would leave it settled. The Ducati rider won and the Spaniard was 4th, so everything would be resolved in the last Grand Prix.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

MotoGP – Valencian Community GP 2017

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Valencia again. Dovizioso, at 21, was bound to win. He tried, but he fell in the middle of the race and until then he endured the resistance. Fourth MotoGP title in five years.

Photo by: Toni Börner

MotoGP – Japanese GP 2018

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The Catalan wanted to win the title as soon as possible and if it was at Honda’s house, even better. With a margin of 77, if he didn’t give up more than two points, he did. Márquez was not satisfied and won, completing the five-time championship.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

MotoGP – Thai GP 2019

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Márquez arrived in Buriram with the first option of being champion. If he won, he did it and did not let the opportunity pass.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images