Motorcycling-Marquez can win title even if not 100% fit, says Dovizioso | WKZO | All Kalamazoo

By Rohith Nair

(Reuters) – Marc Marquez may never be as strong as he was at the peak of his MotoGP career, but even with an injury-ravaged body functioning at less than 100 per cent, he is capable of winning the title, his age-old rival Andrea Dovizioso mentioned.

Marquez, a six-time MotoGP champion, has been a long way from a title challenge since 2020 due to a season-ending crash in the first race that year, followed by bouts of double vision due to concussions in 2021 and 2022.

A terrifying crash in Indonesia last month ruled Marquez out for two races and he admitted he would drive carefully in this weekend’s Grand Prix of the Americas, but Dovizioso said he could not rule the Spaniard out. the race.

“I have my opinion on Marc and I don’t think he can get back to his best physical condition like in the past,” Dovizioso told Reuters.

“It will be difficult, if not impossible, but that doesn’t mean he can’t win the title.”

Former Ducati rider Dovizioso finished second in the championship behind a dominating Marquez for three straight years as the duo fueled an intense rivalry and were embroiled in numerous last-lap battles.

“His talent is crazy, not many people and riders realize that,” added Dovizioso, who now races with the Yamaha RNF team. “He has a chance to win even though he’s not 100 per cent fit.”

OPEN SEASON

The 2022 season has three races, but Marquez can still imagine his chances after nine different riders finished on the podium, underlining just how open this season has been.

Dovizioso explained that the gap between first and last has narrowed in recent years due to the development of bicycles, with downforce, ride height and punching devices, and electronics making a greater difference than the ability of the cyclist.

“In my opinion, on the riders’ side, it’s not very pleasant… The development on the technical side in MotoGP is not (for) the best because if you are fast this weekend, you can fight. If you’re not fast, you can’t fight,” he said.

“It’s all about speed. Each session resembles qualifying practice because you have to set a good time to be in the top 10.

” I do not like it. Maybe it’s because I was brought up in a different situation, but that’s how it is and you have to adapt.

Dovizioso, 36, returned to a Yamaha bike last year after nearly a decade and he struggled to score points with independent team RNF Racing, saying he is still adapting to the new machine.

“You can’t imagine how big the changes have been because everything is very different, most things are the opposite (compared to Ducati). It takes time to adapt,” he said. he declares.

“I’m quite small on the bike and I struggled with the size of the frame being taller – that was the biggest problem. If you’re not comfortable you can’t push it to the limit. And you can’t change the size of the bike.

“I realized last year how difficult it would be, I realized some negative points. If you don’t ride in a specific way, like Fabio (Quartararo) did, you can’t use the potential of the bike… I try to study and copy other Yamaha riders.

(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Toby Davis)