Keith Huewen: I wouldn’t rule Marc Marquez out for Aragon...
Absent from MotoGP since Mugello in May due to the latest operation on his right arm, Marquez returned to an RCV at the Misano test, finishing just 0.5s from the top.
But having barely started gym work, Marquez is far from fully fit and a decision on whether or not he will race at Aragon this weekend is due to be made at any moment.
“I rang Mike Trimby at IRTA just before we came on air,” said former Grand Prix rider and British Champion Keith Huewen.
“Mike said that [Honda team manager] Alberto Puig would tell IRTA if they were going to put Marc Marquez in this weekend, after the Misano test.
“There’s still been no call as yet.
"Now that doesn’t mean Marc Marquez isn’t going to ride at Aragon, it just means no final decision has been given to IRTA.
“I would say, reading between the lines, he might ride and they are just leaving that decision until the last minute.
“There is no particular timescale they have to work to. They can shift Bradl out in a heartbeat and bring Marc in. It’s just a case of changing the name on the entry list.
“So I wouldn’t rule Marc Marquez out for Aragon. He’s got a fantastic record around there.”
Crash.net MotoGP editor Peter McLaren added: “Marquez was limited to 39 laps on the first day of the Misano test to see how he felt, then came back and did another 61 on the second day. So 100 laps over two days, that's pretty impressive under the circumstances.
“Of course, he wasn’t slow; top Honda, half-a-second from the top, but the big question is his physical endurance. Marquez’s longest run at the test was 7 laps in a row and the Misano race distance was 27. So he’s got some thinking to do and a decision to make for Aragon.”
After a rundown on who-tested-what at Misano, including the impressive debut for Yamaha’s 2023 engine, Podcast host Harry Benjamin opens a debate over MotoGP’s controversial plans to race in Saudi Arabia and where else the sport might head next.
Talk then moves on to the remaining places on the 2023 MotoGP grid, Luca Marini being confirmed at VR46 while they are on air, before the trio turn their attention to Aragon and trying to predict the top three for this Sunday’s race.
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