Marc Marquez’s Resilient Return: Doubling Down on Fitness to Stay Competitive in MotoGP After Severe Injury

Marc Marquez Discusses the Impact of Severe Injury on His MotoGP Strategy

“It’s become more challenging…”

Marc Marquez expresses the need to put in twice the effort in his physical training to stay in contention in MotoGP after his significant arm injury in 2020.

The career of the athlete who has clinched the world champion title eight times was thrown into uncertainty after he severely fractured his right arm during the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix. This injury necessitated three surgical procedures and sidelined him for the entire season.

Upon his comeback to competitive racing in 2021, he continued to face challenges with his arm due to the bone being rotated over 30 degrees, which led to the need for a fourth significant surgical procedure in 2022.

Marquez reports that, although his arm no longer presents problems during his motorcycle races, he finds himself needing to put significantly more effort into his physical conditioning compared to the period between 2013 and 2019 when he secured his six MotoGP championships.

“Competing has become more challenging,” Marquez remarked following his second grand prix win of 2024 at the San Marino GP.

Certainly, up until 2019 and 2020, I was incredibly quick and powerful. I would say that I had an easier time managing tasks at home, making everything seem more straightforward.

"Now, following everything that has transpired in my life and particularly with my body, I find myself having to put in twice the effort. I must spend more time with the physiotherapist, requiring additional upkeep."

"However, this is the approach I must take if I aim to maintain my position at the highest level."

"I'm prepared to go through with it. Indeed, I have to invest additional time in getting my body ready, but it's part of my duties, and I'm committed to it. The reason I'm competing is that I'm fully capable of doing so."

One key reason Marquez parted ways with Honda at the conclusion of last year stemmed from the disparity between the effort he invested in regaining peak physical condition and the lack of a competitive offering from HRC.

Switching to Gresini to pilot a previous season's Ducati aimed to test his ability to remain competitive in MotoGP.

In 2024, Marquez has observed that he is becoming increasingly stronger on a mental level.

"Physically, I'm in a worse state now compared to 2019 when my body was more or less fine," he elaborated.

Certainly, it's now acceptable to compete against the leading contenders on the race track.

"Obviously, I have to put in more effort working from home. However, on a psychological level, I'm beginning to feel increasingly resilient."

"The circuits at Aragon, Red Bull Ring, and the San Marino event instilled in me that sense of confidence."

"In Aragon, I've always performed well. However, being at the forefront in Misano, creating a distance… there are times when you lose touch with that sensation, and today, I managed to experience it again."

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