They say it is good, very good. Some say he is fast and has a fine line. Others, that he is aggressive and feisty. He has won five races in a row in the Motorcycling World Championship -something that no one has done since Valentino Rossi in 1997- and he is still so calm. Marc Márquez is a polite and calm 17-year-old who likes to ride his bike, take a dip in the pool, and eat a good plate of spaghetti carbonara topped with a handful of ripe cherries. Marc Márquez is the leader of the 125cc World Championship after a spectacular first half of the season.
After so many weeks of racing in a row, did you feel like slowing down a bit?
It’s true that racing every week can be tiring, but in my case, as I’ve been winning and things have been going well for me, I’ve always been very motivated, weekend after weekend. In any case, holidays are always good, especially when you’ve done your homework well beforehand.
Is it annoying to interrupt such a good run?
Yes, when things go smoothly, you ride comfortably, with confidence, and on top of that you get victories, you would race every weekend, but switching off is also positive to face the second half of the championship with more strength.
With so many races, so much travelling and so many days away from home, do you accumulate a lot of fatigue?
No, because if you manage it well, at the end of a race you can do a bit of gentle exercise that allows you to recover well. Besides, in winter we already do a strong preparation that has to be useful for the whole season.
What has been the victory that has made you most excited?
The Catalunya Grand Prix, because it was at home, in front of the fans, in front of my fan club, and at the circuit that is closest to my own home. To race in front of your fans and to win, to do the lap of honour in front of your people, after an almost perfect race, leading from the beginning to the end, is very special. It’s every driver’s dream: to win in your own country, and in this case, in Montmeló, which is the closest to us, and a circuit where I’ve been coming to see my idols since I was a child.
Which has been the most difficult?
Mugello was a very hard victory, because I had a bad start and I had to recover from behind. The bike was very fast there and it helped me a lot. Also the victory at Silverstone – for sure it was a nice race for the spectator – but for the one who was there, it was more risky. When you finish and things have gone well, it’s fun.
During the pre-season you saw your potential for this year, was it a big blow to suffer a crash like the one at Jerez in the second race of the year?
Not very hard, but it was a difficult moment, because we were racing at home, precisely at a circuit where we had done all the preseason and we knew it was fast. Besides, I was starting from pole position and we knew that we could fight at least for the podium, but also for the victory. To crash on the first lap, because of a mistake that wasn’t mine, was a difficult moment. We lost a lot of points and I also dislocated my shoulder. I spent three weeks recovering and I couldn’t get to Le Mans fully recovered. That’s what made it the hardest, but the people around you help you a lot to get through it.
In March you broke the circuit record, you were strong in practice, you started from pole position. Did you see yourself winning the race?
Well, I got a podium the year before and Jerez has always been very good for me. In the pre-season I was first in all the practice sessions we did and I was always lapping with ease in very good times. I did feel confident to win, but you know that anything can happen, like the rivals taking a step forward and growing, but it is clear that I thought we were ready to fight for the victory.
We are right in the middle of the championship, and you lead the World Championship with 26 and 39 points ahead of Pol Espargaró and Nico Terol. Did you imagine that?
The objective and the illusion we had from the beginning was to reach the halfway point of the championship close to the leader, fighting for the top positions. The truth is that I didn’t expect to arrive with this margin, and even less so after Jerez, but we have been able to win five races in a row, which has allowed us to recover the 32-point deficit we had in Le Mans. Besides, Pol and Nico have also made some mistakes now and have matched me with ‘zeros’, although Nico has been more unlucky to get injured and miss the race in Germany as well. In any case, the reality is that we have that advantage and it reflects the good work we have been doing, but we have to be very aware that there is still half of the championship to go.
You’ve been in the World Championship for two and a half years and you’ve won five races, but they’ve come all at once. Did you think they would come sooner?
That always depends on many factors, in the same way that getting five wins in a row also depends on whether or not the upcoming circuits are good for you, the form of your rivals, etc. It is true that last year I would have liked to get some victories, but it was not possible due to different circumstances, both my own mistakes and failures of a bike that was not as competitive as my rivals’.
One of the secrets of this season is your teamwork, what would you highlight about the group of people you are working with?
It is a very familiar team, very welcoming, in which we are not many people, but everyone is very good at their job, and what is more important, we have got on very well. From the moment I come into the box with the bike, when I tell them my impressions they quickly know what I need. I think part of the success is the experience they have, plus the very good atmosphere between everyone, and that makes the team even stronger.
What has it been like working with Aki Ajo?
He is a person who I had already noticed his good hands carbureting a two-stroke bike, which is what we use in 125cc, and that’s why I decided to ride with him. He has a lot of experience and has worked with many brands, Derbi, Malagutti and Honda, and at the end of last season I was looking at the way he worked, how much he always ran Cortese’s bike, or when Di Meglio won the World Championship. He is an experienced team manager with very clear ideas and a great ability when it comes to setting up both the engine and the chassis. The performance of the bike is always very consistent, that’s the most important thing, and in no training session has he let me down.
It was said that the RSA, both Derbi and Aprilia, was a very critical and difficult bike, but from the beginning you have always been very fast. What is the most difficult thing on this bike?
It’s relative, because coming from the KTM, everything I’ve found, both in the chassis and the engine, is better. The most critical thing is the chassis, but I quickly got a good feeling and a good set-up.
Apart from you, Nico Terol and Pol Espargaró have also won races this season, do you think any other rider can reach your level in the second half of the season?
I think it’s difficult to fight for the title. I think there is a small gap between third and fourth. Bradley Smith will be there at some races for sure, and Cortese, Krummenacher or Rabat could also appear.
It’s been many years since you met Pol Espargaró on the track. Do you remember the first time?
I must have been about five years old and we started to compete against each other in the Enduro per nens, which were races that took place in Catalonia, although you rode one at a time. When I was eight years old, when I started racing in the Conti Cup, we raced against each other more, although he is almost two years older than me and he always moved up to the next category before me.
Now, the next round is in the Czech Republic. What is the Brno Circuit like?
It’s a complicated track, especially the last part, uphill, which is where you get to set the time and for which we have to prepare well. With the KTM I struggled a bit, but this season everything is different and I hope to make progress during the weekend.
Can you extend your winning streak?
It’s not an obsession, but obviously if we have the chance to win, we’ll try. The important thing is to think about the Championship and always score points.
Where is Marc Márquez’s limit?
We don’t know, because with Pol and Nico we are raising the level race after race, breaking records at almost every circuit, and with the team we only think about continuing to progress. In practice and in the races we always give the maximum, although we try not to lose control, and ride feeling the reactions of the bike at all times. It is true that sometimes we have done a lap where you push a little harder and get 3 or 4 tenths of a second more than seemed impossible.
At home there has always been a great passion for motorbikes. Did your father race?
No, not racing, but he has always been very keen, and he had travelled on his own bike to Jerez and also to Assen. Besides, he collaborated in the Moto Club Segre as a driver, so I’ve always seen a lot of motorbikes since I was a child.
On the other hand, you are not the only motorcyclist at home. Is your brother as good as you?
Alex is still training and we can’t say if he’s going to be a phenomenon, but he’s got the skills. He knows how to ride a motorbike and also how to go fast, which is the important thing.
Will he ever catch you on the track?
I hope so! Hopefully one day we’ll find ourselves together fighting for victory if possible, but he’s still doing the Spanish Championship, he’s young, and he has to go step by step and not stop working. Let’s hope so, let’s hope he gets there.
In your third World Championship, you have now achieved several victories. Do you feel the fame in the streets?
Now I’m starting to be known not only in the circuits, and both in Lleida and Barcelona, you always hear someone whispering ‘it’s Marc Márquez’. It’s noticeable, but I keep my feet on the ground and I take it with a lot of humility.
Are you aware of how many people follow you on the internet, the fan club, facebook, etc.?
Of course, because without all of them this world would be nothing, and it is one of the most important things a rider has. You know that they will be by your side at all times and that is one of the greatest satisfactions you can have.
