Marc Márquez clinches title with victory in Japan

Starting from sixth position, Márquez was third on the first corner and up into second –behind Dovizioso– before the end of Lap 1.

Four laps from the end, he passed the Italian at Turn 9 and defended his lead from then on, with his rival making a mistake on the penultimate lap.

Marc Márquez:
“I feel really, really good. I would say it’s a dream came true, or better, that I’m living a dream. It’s something so special, here together with my team, all the Honda and HRC people, my family and my staff. It has been a great season, and ever since Aragon I’ve been tasting, imagining this title, because it was very close. Then I realized that this wasn’t my style, and I needed extra motivation, so I set the goal of trying to achieve it with my first match ball—in Motegi, by winning the race. This circuit was a challenging one to manage that, but it seems like when I’m under pressure, I feel better on the bike! Today the race was as I expected. I was prepared to make a good start and immediately make some passes. I got to second place at the end of the first lap, and then was able to follow Andrea and stay with him. I thought I could try and attack before the last lap because I felt I had something extra to give. He was pushing very hard and made a mistake, and that’s a shame because he deserved to be here on the podium. That’s also something that I think Dani would deserve at least once this season. Anyway, when I crossed the finish line it was an explosion of joy. My people prepared this Level7 celebration, but I didn’t know anything ahead of time. I never want to know, but I think it’s because I used to play that kind of game a lot. Now it’s time to celebrate this seventh title and enjoy these final three races.“

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21 Oct, 2018

Moto GP

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18 Oct, 2018

Moto GP

First chance for Márquez to clinch title in Japan

Marc Márquez arrives at the Japanese Grand Prix with a 77-point lead over Andrea Dovizioso and 99 over Valentino Rossi. He will be proclaimed champion if he has at least 75 points more than his nearest rival at the end of the race.

Márquez has already been crowned MotoGP World Champion twice at Twin Ring Motegi: In 2014 and in 2016.

Marc Márquez:
“We have our first match ball at Honda’s home race, which is very important for our Factory. Of course we’ll try to get the best result in front of Honda’s people and home fans, but Motegi is a stop-and-go track where strong acceleration is a key factor, so we’ll have to work hard and improve a little bit in that area if we want to fight with Ducati. Otherwise, we’ll try to remain focused and calm and handle the situation as well as possible. The important thing is to ultimately achieve our goal at some point.”

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18 Oct, 2018

Moto GP

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08 Oct, 2018

Moto GP

Marc Márquez wins Thai GP and takes further step towards the title

An intense finale to the race starred Marc Márquez and Andrea Dovizioso who, with four laps to go, thrilled fans with their overtaking moves. Finally, the Repsol Honda Team rider took the victory.

With a 77-point advantage in the overall standings, Marc Márquez could win the title at the Japanese Grand Prix if he finishes ahead of Andrea Dovizioso.

Marc Márquez:
“Of course I’m very, very happy today because it’s the first time I’ve beaten Dovi in this way. We were very equal, and my strategy was to try and attack in order to open a gap and avoid having it come down to the last lap. But Dovi had a very good pace and I was struggling with the front tyre, so I wasn’t able. Instead, I just tried to manage the tyres and stick to him. Honestly, I wasn’t so confident going into the final lap because I’ve lost many head-to-head finishes with him in the past. But this time, we swapped roles—I used Dovi’s style and Dovi used Marquez’s style!—and that worked to overtake him on the corner exit. It was a great feeling to race in front of all the Thai fans, who cheered and supported all of us riders equally, really enjoying the sport and making me feel good over the whole weekend. I’m really thankful to them. Now the first match ball will be in Japan, which is the most important race for Honda as it’s their only home Grand Prix. Of course we’ll try our best there, but if it’s not possible, the main target is still to achieve the title at some point.”

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08 Oct, 2018

Moto GP

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03 Oct, 2018

Uncategorized

Márquez returns to Thailand with good memories

Márquez reaches the fifteenth round of the World Championship 72 points ahead of his nearest rival in the overall standings, with 125 points still in play.

Marc Márquez:
“It will be exciting to race in Thailand for the first time; for sure there will be many fans in the grandstands, which is always a nice feeling. We must remain focused and calm though, as it will be important to manage the weekend well, working in the way that we’re used to doing. We had a good test in February but we’ll need to recheck every detail starting on Friday morning. Some parts of the circuit are tricky, but the layout in general is nice. Surely the high humidity and temperature are going to be demanding on the body, but when you get on the bike you just forget those things and simply focus on riding.”

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03 Oct, 2018

Uncategorized

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