Marquez took his first podium in the wet conditions of last week’s French GP and registered his second on Sunday at Aragon after chasing Alex Rins for victory in dry conditions.
The Honda driver admitted on Saturday in Aragon, after qualifying as the best eleventh of the season, that the pursuit of a repeat of his Le Mans success was not a “real goal” – but to be one of the fastest on the track Rennens proved.
Marquez believes he will have to focus on his “rookie potential” in order to consistently finish in the top eight for the remaining laps.
“It means a bonus,” Marquez quipped when asked about the importance of another podium. “Joking aside, it is true that these are not two dry podiums. It was a wet one at Le Mans that nobody expected because we started on the 18th. But here it’s a dry podium that doesn’t come because a lot of drivers fell.
“We were the second fastest on the track and regained a lot of positions. That means we do our job as well as possible. We are improving day by day, we will not give up, we will try to improve until the end of the season.
“Now I’m going to focus on 110 percent for the next weekend because I think we have a good chance of improving and taking some profit. But I also think we have to see whether we can show this potential that we have here in Valencia and Portimao.
“It will be a good test for us next year to be fast from the start. But my goal is not to be on the podium every weekend because it’s not our real potential. Our true potential is like a beginner trying to be and be more regular in the top 8 [more consistent] and try to build our self-confidence a little more. “
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Marquez was in the top eight for most GP practice sessions in Aragon and admitted that he felt “freer” on his bike that weekend. The Honda rider made two mistakes late chasing Rins. He thinks it cost me the chance to fight for his first win.
“I knew on the final laps before the race that I was one of the better drivers at handling the tires, with the life of the rear tires,” he added. “So I wait until the end to be smart and try to be really smooth in every way. Then, with two laps to go, I made two mistakes, in the last corner and the first corner, which cost me the chance to fight for victory with Rins. I lost a few tenths there.
“Then I tried again on the last lap to expect a mistake from Rins, but he was also very quick on the last lap. So really happy; [a] really important podium. “