All eyes were on the eight-time world champion as he struggled to finish the Portuguese Grand Prix in a dazzling seventh. Pol Espargaro’s weekend went unrewarded.
The sun was shining again on the Algarve when the MotoGP World Championship is due for the third round of the 2021 season. In a quiet warm-up phase, both riders on the Repsol Honda Team confirmed the feeling on their respective Honda RC213V machines.
When the lights went out, Marc Marquez was the focus of attention as he shot forward from the sixth and immediately began fighting among the top three. The fighting was fierce and a still recovering Marquez was forced to relax the intensity of his fight. The # 93 tuned into its rhythm and tried to maintain its place in the top ten without making costly mistakes.
Marquez finished his goal of finishing the race and crossed the finish line in seventh and top Honda. The incredible effort of the race was clearly seen as an emotional Marc Marquez was brought back to the Repsol Honda team’s garage to applause from the team. With his nine points for seventh place, Marc Marquez ended a point drought of 518 days.
Unfortunately, Pol Espargaro’s race was hampered after just a few laps as a technical problem brought him back into the garage. After a promising start, Espargaro struggled outside the top ten before a rear brake problem brought him to the back of the field and forced him to retreat. This is Espargaro’s first DNF with the Repsol Honda team.
The MotoGP World Championship is now taking place at a familiar rhythm, a week before the circuit before returning for the fourth lap in Jerez. For both Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro, the weekend offers the opportunity to continue their respective journeys and show even more of the potential of the RC213V.