Keshav

Can’t help but wonder if Marquez’s statement, was just him trying to talk himself into a more confident mindset, like he’s made a statement that he now needs to live up to. I’m thinking maybe he’ll be on the podium at best. Fabio is at the top of his game and the KTMs will be very capable at this track. And Marquez’s pronouncement of his confidence in himself, was not manifest in his riding at the last race.

It’s a shame to see such a great rider laid low like this, but the upside, perhaps, is that HRC may be forced to re-think the bike. They should be kicking themselves in the ass for letting Pedrosa go.

ApriliaRS250

Will be an interesting FP2 tomorrow

michaelm

Particularly since it was probably Puig being vengeful for Pedrosa eventually sacking him as his manager.

Little Walter

In my not so humble opinion it would be a travesty if Honda were to get concessions. Not out of any Calvinist need to see them repent for their hubris, nor to shame them (they're incapable of shame) but for the possibility of taking a long enough bath in their failed strategy of depending on superman riders to ride around their engineering folly that they might make a really rideable chassis for the first time in years.

p4p1

Hard to disagree with any of this. The season still has a long way to go as well. IMO Honda have never really recovered from 2015, where once again both guys asked for an easier bike to ride but didn't get it. They relied on nonpareil talent to take titles since then while the results for other riders have consistently gotten worse. It has been reported many times that all the riders on the bike were more or less giving the same feedback, including Lorenzo, Pedrosa, Crutchlow and Marquez but Honda's attitude was that as long as someone could ride around it then it wasn't the bike.

320Dave

Its literally |Ducati 2007-2008-2009-2010 situation all over again but in orange color.

Everyone including Ducati and the masses thought the Duc was a bullet of a bike, completely ignored what the rest of the field did on it and only pinned the wins to the bike and not the rider. They were wrong.

warthog1

I don't reckon too many have pinned Hondas last few championships to the bike.
Not anyone who has watched MM screw that Honda into a corner holding the front up as it runs away.

misfit

MM topped the time sheets in FP1. The other Hondas aren't too far behind too. Well, well...

MigsAngel

One lap in FP1 doesn't win a race...and if you see the times of MM all go slower as the session progressed while others got faster...

320Dave

Just to play the same game as you, that could mean Marc only needed 1 lap to top the sheets and then concentrated on Race pace while the others played catch up.