The Unwanted MotoGP Record Marc Marquez Is About To Break
Categories: MotoGP
Published: 13th November 2023
After Sepang, Marc Marquez is close to breaking an unwanted MotoGP record – he sees a key moment in his poor qualifying.
At the Buriram event, Marc Marquez injected a surprising ray of optimism into Honda’s performance with a commendable fourth-place finish in the sprint and a sixth-place position in the race.
However, aspirations for a continued success story during the Grand Prix weekend in Sepang were swiftly dashed.
A mishap in the sprint translated into a modest 13th-place finish in the main race on Sunday, largely attributed to Marquez’s compromised starting position.
Qualifying proved challenging, with the Spanish rider unable to progress beyond the 20th starting position, an outcome once again influenced by an unfortunate crash.
Notably, Marquez now boasts a tally of 27 crashes in the statistics, not only solidifying his dominance in the current season but also approaching the record set in 2017.
In response to inquiries about his performance, Marquez stressed, “I am riding in a good way this weekend. I did not crash in Buriram, and on Friday, I did not crash.”
“In qualifying, it was my last flying lap. I overtook Augusto Fernandez and slid away on a bump in the track.”
Despite his efforts to regain momentum in the sprint, a subsequent crash after only two laps in turn 14 thwarted his progress.
A small mistake with big consequences! 💥
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) November 11, 2023
But @marcmarquez93 manages to rejoin after that T14 tumble 👊#MalaysianGP 🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/17RzMnszkj
Although he re-entered the race, his final standing was 21st, with only wildcard starter Alvaro Bautista and teammate Joan Mir, who also experienced a spill, trailing behind.
Reflecting on the challenges, Marquez conceded, “One can say that I ruined the weekend with the qualifying. Our pace was not bad, but starting from 20th place is a struggle”.
