The six-time MotoGP world champion guided his radically revised 2022 Honda to third on the grid in Saturday’s first qualifying session of the season at the Losail International Circuit.
Marquez said pre-weekend that he wouldn’t be able to fight for victory in Qatar and echoed this on Saturday, despite showing strong race pace in FP4.
While he believes he has the potential to fight for the podium, Marquez says his main goal “is to understand 22 laps in a row” on the new Honda.
“For me, the most important thing was FP4, where I ride alone, I had a consistent pace, the lap time was coming in a good way,” he said.
“So, let’s see tomorrow. It’s true that we need to manage many factors; it’s the first race, the tyres, fuel, the track, all these things.
“But the butterflies in the stomach will be there, so let’s see how we can manage.
“This morning I was still too far from the top guys, but this afternoon I was very close.
“This is enough for me and I’m…
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