The six-time MotoGP world champion finished eighth in the Jerez race last Sunday, the second of his comebacks after a nine-month injury break.
While not at his physical peak yet, he admitted that his condition on the bike was better than in Portugal, and this enabled him to understand more about the 2021 RC213V for the first time this year.
After following teammate Pol Espargaro, HRC test driver Stefan Bradl and Johann Zarco of Pramac Ducati at the Spanish GP, Marquez found the 2021 RC213V weak in the middle of the turns.
“I had the opportunity to follow Stefan, follow Pol and also follow Johann for a few laps,” said Marquez when asked by Motorsport.com where he found the bike weaker than the last Honda he rode.
“And where we lose more is the corner in the middle of the exit.
“So if you want to go fast and consistently you usually have to be strong and we lose more.
“So we have to understand why. Now let’s try to analyze everything.
“I mean, the key to this weekend for me is that I have improved my physical condition a lot compared to Portimao.”
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Marquez had hoped to continue evaluating the bike during the test after the race in Jerez on Monday, but withdrew after just seven laps due to neck pain from his big FP3 crash – which “destroyed” him after the Grand Prix.
“So we didn’t test. We only did one run and I felt something on the second, ”he said on Monday.
“My body was locked, especially the neck and also the right shoulder.
“It’s something similar, but better than Portimao. I drove in Portimao and suffered a lot, and on Monday I was completely locked up. But I felt better here in Jerez.
“It is true that the fall I had on Saturday did not help the situation, but I tried anyway because I thought that maybe it would be okay if the body got warm.
“But immediately I saw that I wasn’t able to ride a bike and try things.”
Honda riders had a grueling test on Monday, where everyone tried different new parts – with the brand rating five different aerodynamic fairings.
After declaring his RC213V “a mess” at the Jerez race, Espargaro expressed frustration that all Honda riders were using different packages over the Spanish GP weekend and felt that this was holding back development.