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Marc Marquez finishes Portuguese MotoGP race in 7th place

Written by Nizam Shaikh

After the assessment of the surgery for an infected pseudoarthrosis of the right humerus, Hospital Ruber Internacional medical team gave Marc Marquez a green light to race at the Grande Prémio 888 de Portugal at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve (Algarve International Circuit). Now, the race results are in and the eight-time World Champion has finished the Portuguese Grand Prix in 7th place even after returning to the track following a 518-day break.

Round Three of the MotoGP

Both the Repsol Honda Team riders reported feeling their respective Honda RC213V machines, as the MotoGP World Championship commenced in Algarve. The warm-up sessions were uneventful but pretty important for Marc Marquez as he returned after a long absence. Due to the injuries to the right-hand humerus, Marc had been out of the saddle for the entire 2020 season and the opening season of 2021. The team of Doctors operating on Marquez prevented him from joining the Qatar Grand Prix as well as the Grand Prix of Doha, held at Losail International Circuit.

After a thorough medical review, Doctors found out evident progress in the bone consolidation process and his clinical condition. This led to the return of the Spaniard to Portugal, the round three of MotoGP 2021.

Grande Prémio 888 de Portugal Results

It was lights-out in Algarve and Marc Marquez began his fight from 6th place to the 3rd. The still recovering racer then found himself easing the intensity. Any mistakes now would cost him gravely and thus the racer worked to hold his spot in the top ten. The set objective was to get back into the rhythm and finish the race. Nevertheless, Marquez crossed the line in the 7th position and became the top Honda in the constructors’ line-up. The team also scored 9 points for the endeavour and Marc Marquez finished with a time gap of 13.208 seconds.

Pol Espargaro’s Technical Problem

Unfortunately, Pol Espargaro had a DNF (Did Not Finish). After a few laps, a technical problem with the RC213V brought Pol back into the garage. Pol was battling to be inside the top ten positions when a rear brake problem dropped him to the back of the bunch. This became Pol’s first DNF with the Repsol Honda Team.

Preparing for Jerez

The team is now preparing for round four in Jerez. Both Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro will have another chance to continue their journey towards the championship. The riders promise to show more potential for the Honda RC213V machine in the next round. Stefan Bradl is also hard at work gathering crucial data for the team.

Grande Prémio 888 de Portugal Results
Pos. Rider Num Nation Points Team Constructor Time/Gap
1 QUARTARARO FABIO 20 FRA 25 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 41’46.412
2 BAGNAIA FRANCESCO 63 ITA 20 Ducati Lenovo Team Ducati 4.809
3 MIR JOAN 36 SPA 16 Team Suzuki Ecstar Suzuki 4.948
4 MORBIDELLI FRANCO 21 ITA 13 Petronas Yamaha SRT Yamaha 5.127
5 BINDER BRAD 33 RSA 11 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 6.668
6 ESPARGARO ALEIX 41 SPA 10 Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Aprilia 8.885
7 MARQUEZ MARC 93 SPA 9 Repsol Honda Team Honda 13.208
8 MARQUEZ ALEX 73 SPA 8 LCR Honda Honda 17.992
9 BASTIANINI ENEA 23 ITA 7 Avintia Esponsorama Ducati 22.369
10 NAKAGAMI TAKAAKI 30 JPN 6 LCR Honda Honda 23.676
11 VINALES MAVERICK 12 SPA 5 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 23.761
12 MARINI LUCA 10 ITA 4 SKY VR46 Avintia Ducati 29.66
13 PETRUCCI DANILO 9 ITA 3 Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing KTM 29.836
14 SAVADORI LORENZO 32 ITA 2 Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Aprilia 38.941
15 LECUONA IKER 27 SPA 1 Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing KTM 50.642
16 OLIVEIRA MIGUEL 88 POR 0 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 1 Lap
17 ZARCO JOHANN 5 FRA 0 Pramac Racing Ducati DNF
18 RINS ALEX 42 SPA 0 Team Suzuki Ecstar Suzuki DNF
19 ROSSI VALENTINO 46 ITA 0 Petronas Yamaha SRT Yamaha DNF
20 MILLER JACK 43 AUS 0 Ducati Lenovo Team