Marc Marquez’s seventh at the British MotoGP was “acceptable”, he says, despite dropping to 40 points behind Jorge Martin in the championship.

Marquez went to Silverstone 18 points behind Martin, but lost 22 over the weekend thanks to his two sevenths while Martin went 1-2 over the weekend.

The reigning MotoGP champion has battled well-documented physical problems this season, mostly related to the shoulder that was damaged in his crash with Marco Bezzecchi at Mandalika last year.

Marquez was forced to undergo surgery on the shoulder after the French Grand Prix, where he also suffered a foot fracture when he crashed in the Sprint, and missed the Catalan race.

Before the summer he won three times – in Hungary, Czechia, and Germany – but also finished seventh (after a penalty) at Mugello, which was his first race back after the surgery, and Assen, where he couldn’t attack.

Of the circuits Marquez has raced at since he returned from the surgery, Mugello and Assen are most comparable to Silverstone, whose layout is fast and physically demanding thanks to several high-speed direction changed.

As a result, the Silverstone weekend was one in which Marquez expected to struggle.

“I knew that this could be one of the circuits that I will struggle a lot,” he said, speaking to MotoGP.com after the race..

“Always I’m optimistic and I try to think in a better way. But we finished seventh, tomorrow is Monday, and continue the life.”

Despite the tough results, Marquez was pleased enough with the weekend.

“It was a good weekend, acceptable,” he said.

“We couldn’t finish in the best result possible in the race, that was that fifth position, and I was struggling in the last laps. 

“But the bike was working well, the tyre was working well, just I couldn’t find a way to be faster.”