Grand Prix of Qatar: MotoGP stars are ready for lights out at Losail
Qatar Tribune
Vinay Nayudu Doha A new season start is always a bit nervous occasion for the sportstars, especially given the prevailing Covid scenario and the emergence ...
Vinay NayuduDohaA new season start is always a bit nervous occasion for the sportstars, especially given the prevailing Covid scenario and the emergence from it. So when the top six riders in Doha for the MotoGP season-opening Grand Prix of Qatar addressed the media at the Lusail International Circuit on Thursday they sounded cautious while hoping to make a winning start. Interestingly, when they were asked to make their predictions of who would likely finish among the top three, none of the six had any one name which matched that of the others. Marc Marquez chose to name himself to be on the top of the podium!Nothing wrong with that. Just that the Honda rider has just recovered from a broken arm following a crash which cut short his 2020 season. He also missed the final two rounds of 2021 for three months when a concussion suffered in a training accident left him with double vision issues due to nerve damage.Given the background, his choice of naming himself is more about guts perhaps. But then champions are made of sterner stuff. The Spaniard could be an underdog given the situation for some but as he put it, âI always back myself. Even if injured, I will bet on myself.â It is a welcome statement as Marquez had shaken the sport of MotoGP a few months ago thinking of calling it quits. A season where had three wins in 15 races out of a possible 32 starts â and the accidents may have pushed him.But now the 29-year-old is back and raring to go. He will challenge Frenchman Fabio Quartararo who won the title in Yamaha last season.Marquez is also chasing retired Italian legend Valentino Rossiâs record of seven top-flight world titles. The Spaniard has six and if he can keep himself fit and avoid crashing his Honda often, he can fight for the title.âIâm happy to be here,â said Marquez. âItâs already better than last year and thatâs important. After the winter it wasnât clear but it was important to test in Malaysia and Mandalika, after Mandalika I felt a step with my physical condition and thatâs important. Letâs see how to, the way to start the first race, for 2022 I want to fight all these guys for the title of course, maybe for the Qatar GP Iâm not ready, during the weekend we will understand where we are,â he added.Marquez will be racing for the first time since 2019 in Qatar, a track where he has traditionally struggled and has won just once. While he is unsure of his victory this weekend at the Lusail International Circuit, he is hoping the revamped and much-improved RC213V can put him among the title challengers. âThey did a big step on the bike,â said Marquez. âHonestly it feels like I changed the brand because itâs a completely different bike. Since I arrived in Honda there was always improvement but the character of the bike was always similar, but now itâs a big change. In Malaysia I struggled a bit but I feel the potential because in one lap the lap time was coming, but in Mandalika I was bringing the bike to my riding style already and I felt a step. During the first races we will find small things, but the base is nice, itâs good, and yeah letâs see in qualifying and race conditions where we are,â he said.Meanwhile, reigning champion Fabio Quartararo will head into the new season with a whole set of uncertainties. The 22-year-old became the first Frenchman to win the title last season.The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team are eagerly awaiting the start with Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli riding their YZR-M1s under lights.Quartararo was the 2021 Doha GP winner and is eager to push to the limit again this year. The signs were there last season when Quartararo struggled to keep up with the accelerating Ducatis as Italian Francesco Bagnaia won four of the last six races. To add to his problems on track, Quartararo is also out of contract at Yamaha at the end of this season as he chooses to keep his options âwide open.â âTo be honest itâs great to be back and when the season is over, the weeks are going quickly, but when youâre close to riding in Qatar, the last week was long and itâs great to be here. I think pre-season was good, we expected a bit more top speed. It is what it is, we need to give 100% in any case. Iâm ready and looking forward to starting tomorrow,â said Quartararo.With his rivals, especially Ducati, showing signs of improvement in pre-season testing, Quartararo braces for toughest challenge to defend his world title. âItâs so difficult. Last year you could say five or six riders but now I could say anyone. Of course the guys that are here today, but itâs difficult to say a few. We will need to wait a little bit more to see the clear opponents,â he said.The strongest contender by sheer pace on the bike is Ducatiâs Bagnaia. The last yearâs runner-up is fresh off a new two-year deal that will take Bagnaia and Ducati to the end of the 2024 season. The 25-year-old will be aiming for Ducatiâs first ridersâ championship title since Casey Stoner dominated the grid in 2007. The Italian heads into round one at Lusail with Ducatiâs all-new GP 22 bike possessing more power than its predecessor that was untouchable on the straights last year.âItâs always that Ducati looks the best but the last time they won was in 2007. Itâs very difficult to say if another bike is better,â said Bagnaia. The Losail International Circuit was added to the MotoGP calendar in 2004 and became the first and only circuit in MotoGP to host a night-time Grand Prix four years later. The track is best known for its iconic over a kilometre long main straight followed by a steep first corner â a combination that offers plenty of overtakes.