After finishing second on Saturday Marc Marquez believes he can challenge in Sunday's Grand Prix.
At the Australian Grand Prix, it was Marc Marquez who set the pace in the Friday Practice session. However, like Marquez predicted the GP24's made a step on Saturday for Qualifying and the Sprint Race.
The Spaniard ended up finishing second in both he was beaten by Jorge Martin to pole and victory in the Sprint. Despite Martin's clear domination in the Sprint Race Marquez believes he can challenge the #89 in Sunday's Grand Prix.
“Today before the race I said ‘Ok, will be a normal first lap and then it will be an easier race’,” he told motogp.com. "But immediately in the first corner, I made a mistake. I didn’t calculate well the way that Martin braked. It’s true that he braked super aggressively but it’s the way to disengage the front device, and the rear device after the start.
“So, that small mistake plus the wind cost me a lot of positions. Then, from that point, I concentrated well, I tried to push from the beginning on that lap, don’t exaggerate because it’s easy to exaggerate and do more mistakes. So, I just focused on that second position. When I arrived there I tried to push for two laps, but I saw Martin reacted in a good way. Tomorrow we will have another opportunity.”
Marquez is not confident that he would be able to beat Martin if the Prima Pramac rider breaks away at the front and the race becomes like a 'rally race'.
“Maybe yes, maybe no,” he replied when asked if he could take the fight to Martin in the grand prix. "I think yes, but of course at the moment, honestly speaking, tomorrow if we have like a ‘rally race’, everybody alone, he’s faster than me.
“So, let’s see if we can do a good first lap and especially try to understand the wind, the track temperature, because here the wind direction changes and it changes the riding style.”
Marquez is unsure what approach he will take when it comes to a tyre choice for the Australian Grand Prix.
“Right now, in the sprint, the soft rear was the correct option,” he said. But we need to cut the tyre, and understand how the tyre wear is. Michelin needs to inform the teams how is that famous blistering because new asphalt normally it’s there.
“But let’s see. I think it will be between the soft rear and medium, but it will be crucial because here when you drop the tyre you can be one, two seconds slower.”