The eight-time grand prix world champion finished fourth in last Sunday’s grand prix at Losail, having scored a fifth place in the sprint and sixth in qualifying.
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Over the distance of the grand prix, Marquez’s average lap pace on his GP23 was just 0.160s down on dominant race winner Francesco Bagnaia on the 2024 factory-spec Ducati.
Marquez continued to urge patience in his adaptation to the Ducati and insists he is still far from reaching the limit of the bike.
“First grand prix for Ducati, of course it was a solid weekend, like I did in the pre-season,” he said. “Solid days, trying not to exaggerate, trying not to make any mistakes, trying to be calm in all situations, don’t be crazy.
“As I said on Thursday, the expectation is super high but I keep going with my style.
“I want to be patient this year, I want to enjoy again, I want to fight for the top five positions and it’s what I do this weekend. But yeah, I enjoyed it. Still every day I improve my riding style, every day I change a few things that help a little bit.
“Still, I believe that I don’t arrive on the limit of the bike.”
Source: Autosport