Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez secured his first Grand Prix victory of the season in a dominant showing at Balaton Park last weekend, which led Ducati chief Davide Tardozzi to make a bold prediction on the Spaniard’s renewed title hopes.
The Spaniard produced one of his finest weekends atop Ducati machinery at the Hungarian Grand Prix and was largely untouchable for the majority of the weekend.
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It culminated in a fairytale weekend for Marquez, who has struggled to race at the top of his game through several injury issues that have hindered his title defence this year.
However, Ducati chief Davide Tardozzi needed no convincing when it came to his title chances following his clinching of pole position, a Sprint race win, a Grand Prix victory, and the overall fastest lap in Hungary.
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In a Hungarian Grand Prix review episode of the Hospitality Motociclismo podcast, MotoGP journalist Mela Chercoles revealed the inside sentiments from Tardozzi following Marquez’s return to the top step of the podium.
“Let’s see how he’s doing in Brno in two weeks’ time, but of course, after what we’ve seen here, no one doubts that he’ll be fighting for pole position, for victory on Saturday and Sunday,” Chercoles said about the reigning world champion.
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“He’s already in a position to try and win at any Grand Prix. And that’s great news for the championship. This doesn’t mean he’ll always win, although I will tell you what Tardozzi is saying off the record to his colleagues.
“On the day Marc is 100%, he’s not saying he’s 100% yet, but on the day he’s 100%, he will win every race in the championship. The faith they have in him is incredible because of what he did last year.
“And because we’ve seen yet again that someone else in his place would still be recovering. They’d be at home, looking over their entire track record and their bank balance.
“In Marc’s case, neither his track record nor his bank balance can take away his hunger to keep winning and keep trying. He doesn’t have that tenth title etched in stone.”
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Marc Marquez dealt a big blow to Aprilia with his dominance in Hungary
Not only was Marquez’s perfect weekend a big boost to his confidence, but also a huge blow to Aprilia’s hopes of securing a maiden world title in the premier class.
Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi still holds a commanding 72-point lead over Marquez in the MotoGP standings, but seeing a full return to form from him in Balaton Park is sure to set the alarm bells ringing for the remainder of the campaign.
The Italian rider was unable to score any points during Sunday’s Grand Prix due to Aprilia teammate Jorge Martin’s hasty entry into turn one, which saw him take out three of his rivals, including Bezzecchi.
Things boiled over within the Aprilia setup afterwards too, with Massimo Rivola showing no sympathy for Martin’s error and blasting him in the media. The Noale-based outfit has never found themselves in this position before, so the pressure might be taking its toll.
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