Marquez 'only guy that can fight Ducatis'

Sunday's Aragon MotoGP is shaping up to be another Marc Marquez vs Ducati victory contest.

But with Jorge Lorenzo and/or Andrea Dovizioso beating Honda's runaway title leader at the last three rounds, can Marquez end Ducati's run in front of his home fans?

Marquez, who has qualified third on the grid behind the GP18 riders, feels more competitive than last time at Misano and pledged "if I can fight, I will fight" - despite now having one hand on the title.

"I’m happy because yesterday we were far from Ducati, today we are closer. In qualifying I was able to ride two times in the '46.9. Then with the last tyre I did a mistake," Marquez said.

"There were other riders at turn 12, I missed the concentration a little and went wide. But it was my mistake. Nothing to complain about to nobody.

"Tomorrow the race is long. 23 laps. It will be hard to manage the tyres. But in FP4 I was riding with a lot of laps on the rear tyre. I feel good. We will try. Like other races, it’s a fight against the Ducatis."

The four time MotoGP champion added: "It looks like I’m the only guy that can fight against the two Ducati riders, but it’s like this. We have the package. We have the bike. Here I feel stronger in a few areas than in other circuits, like Misano.

"There is a long main straight where they make a big difference, but apart from that I like this track a lot. It’s one of my favorites and we are strong in a few areas.

"But we cannot forget that I’m 67 points in front [of Dovizioso] in the championship. So if we cannot win tomorrow, if we cannot fight for the victory, it’s important finish the race."

Pressed on the level of risk he is prepared to take in the race, Marquez replied:

"After the first five laps you already understand where you can arrive. Then you need to take some risks, always. To follow the two Ducatis you need to take a risk, and to finish in the podium you need to take a risk.

"So the tactic is exactly the same as other races: Start well, try to pass the first laps, and then understand.

"If I can fight, I will fight. If for some reason I just can follow, I will try to follow. If for some reason I don’t feel good, it’s important to think on the bike.

"But you need to take some risks. This category is so equal. To finish even in the top five you need to take a risk."

Marquez went into qualifying having fallen in FP4. The #93 confirmed that uncertainty over whether the carbon-fibre swingarm had been damaged prompted them to park that bike.

"The carbon swingarm always you need to check well," he said. "We are not in a moment to take a risk if it can be damaged. For that reason, we decided because too many things needed changing - even exhaust and handlebars - to concentrate only on one bike and it was the right decision."

Team-mate Dani Pedrosa will start from fifth place and has perhaps his best chance of a debut 2018 podium since Jerez.

"It’s important to be at least on the second row because the first corner is very close to the start and makes things a little tricky," Pedrosa said. "We’ll need to start well and find a good line between the first two corners.

"We don’t know yet how the pace will be tomorrow, but overall our race rhythm has been better than usual so we’ll try to adjust some more little things and see how it goes."