Marc Marquez reveals “private” demands: “I squeezed Honda”

Marquez is just days away from the preseason Portimao test, the final opportunity to assess what his machinery can do ahead of the season-opening race in the same location on March 26.

Honda are coming off a disastrous 2022 and, with their star rider finally appearing injury-free after two years of problems, know the pressure is on to deliver him a competitive bike.

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“When the tests were over in Valencia, in November, I squeezed Honda,” Marquez told El Pais. 

“I did it in public and in private, even more. 

“Because the more facilities the bike offers, the better [my physical ability] will work. 

“There has been a change in the structure of Honda, there is a new technical director, and many things were tested, many, that are not done by the driver, but by the project.”

Marquez is vying for a seventh MotoGP championship in 2023 which would draw him level with Valentino Rossi’s total.

"I'm working and I'm going to train with the mentality of fighting for a championship,” he said. 

“And my goal is to win it this year. Then, we'll see if we can."

What if he cannot?

"And if not, frustration? Not really. If you can't, you can't.”

• Marquez on Rossi: “I made a mistake, apologised - but he accused me, strongly”

Marquez underwent a fourth major arm surgery last summer but the early signs look promising that he will not be prohibited by his own body in the early rounds of 2023.

He has also restructured his life in Madrid, away from his hometown of Cervera, and with Jaime Martinez replacing his longstanding manager Emilio Alzamora. His brother Alex Marquez has switched LCR Honda for Gresini Ducati and it remains to be seen how this dynamic will play out.

“You don't need the same [things] when you're 20 as you do when you're 30, or you see things differently. I needed a change,” Marquez said. 

“Above all, for sports. In the last three or four years it didn't quite flow in the same way. The injury made me stronger.

"It was essential for me not to change my lifestyle, to continue training in the same way. I said [to my brother]: 'If you don't come, neither will I.' But he also felt like it. And it suited him.”

Will these substantial changes result in a redemption story that delivers the MotoGP championship?

“Life is already compensating me,” he said. “All this comes from a mistake of my own, from a rush, and also perhaps from a lot of bad luck, but it is compensating for the way I am living again. As I want. Enjoying my passion, which is still my job.

“I hope that all this suffering ends up compensating for a good result, but it is already worth living everything I have lived because I have matured in a different way. I do this to win again."