Alex Marquez says overconfidence was a factor in his crash out of second place in the German Grand Prix, as he took full responsibility for the error.
Lining up second on the grid, the Gresini rider kept the pressure on his elder brother Marc Marquez in the first part of the race, even though he couldn’t close the gap enough to attempt a move.
At the end of lap nine of 30, Marquez tucked the front of his Ducati into Turn 13, sliding out of the race.
It brought a premature end to what has otherwise been a strong weekend for the 30-year-old, who qualified on the front row and finished second in the sprint despite not having fully recovered from a collarbone injury.
Asked about his crash at the final corner, Marquez referred to two separate corners at the circuit where he struggled for a variety of reasons.
“I don’t know. Honestly, I did a small mistake trying to… Maybe that T4 today was quite fast and I was maybe too confident in those two points, and I made that small mistake,” he explained.
“It’s true that the grip level was a little bit lower today and everything was more tricky. So, just that.
“I don’t know if the wind had some effect there, but it was more of a mistake. It’s true that I’m upset and quite sad with that crash, but I’m really happy with the overall weekend.
“Coming from an injury and now it looks like we have the speed, but still I need some race rhythm to accept all that speed and to accept all that performance. So, I still need a few more times to again be 100%.”
Marquez missed three grands prix after breaking his shoulder at the Catalan Grand Prix, with the German GP marking only his second full weekend after his comeback.
The Spaniard said his physical limitations left him too stiff on the bike, which contributed to his crash at the long left-hander that leads back to the start/finish straight.
“In those corners, I don’t help too much with the bike to turn. I’m too stiff on the bike, so I put too much weight on the front,” he said. “I think that also was a problem for the crash; that was a reason for the crash.”
Asked if he could make a full recovery after the summer break, with the next round at Silverstone scheduled on 9 August after a gap of four weekends, Marquez said: “I will try. This is my target.
“Step by step, I’m close to my 100%. I hope that after the summer break in Silverstone, I will be at 100% – if not, surely later on.”
Battle with Marc Marquez
Alex Marquez emerged as Marc Marquez’s closest rival at the Sachsenring, where the factory Ducati rider stole the show with pole position and victory in both races.
The Gresini rider missed out on pole position by 0.061s and finished Saturday’s sprint just 0.368s adrift of the reigning champion. He was expected to pose a stronger challenge on Sunday, but both he and fellow Ducati rider Fabio di Giannantonio crashed out of the race early on, allowing Marc Marquez to cruise to his third victory of the season.
Asked if he felt he had a better chance of victory compared to the sprint, Alex Marquez said: “We were more or less at the same point as yesterday. He started quite relaxed and then he started to put his rhythm step by step.
“I was able to give him a small space, just for the front tyre to not overheat. But that training for me was really, really good. I was just trying to wait and trying to save the rear tyre.
“But maybe I forced too much of the front on those two points to gain the time that I was losing in the other ones. So, just that. Small mistake, but quite painful.”
German GP in photos – Sunday
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
German GP – Sunday, in photos
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