World champion Marc Marquez returns to the scene of his first MotoGP triumph on Sunday and looks to be in even more formidable form for the Grand Prix of the Americas in Texas.
Marquez was just a month removed from breaking his right leg in a dirt-bike accident when he won a 2014 season-opening thriller in Doha on March 23.
After almost three weeks’ more recovery time, the 21-year-old Spaniard expects to be even stronger in Austin, where his historic victory last year made him the youngest rider to win a MotoGP race and launched him on his remarkable run to a precocious world title.
“Since round one I’ve been focusing on getting my leg stronger and my body fitter in preparation for the Austin race this weekend,” Marquez said.
“This track is one of my favourites. I had a good race here last year where I have good memories of taking my first win in the MotoGP class.”
There’s a practical advantage for him in Austin as well.
“Thankfully the majority of hard turns are left-handers at this track which is easier on my leg as I’m still not 100 percent fit,” Marquez said.
His Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa, who took third place in Qatar, will be looking to turn the tables on Marquez, after leading the first 12 laps of this race last year before settling for second behind Marquez in the inaugural Grand Prix of the Americas, now one of two MotoGP stops in the United States along with Indianapolis in August.
In the season-opener in Qatar, Marquez fought off a thrilling, wheel-to-wheel challenge from nine-time champion Valentino Rossi on a Yamaha to win by just 0.259sec.
Rossi wants to improve on that finish in the second race of the season, and erase the memory of a dismal weekend in Austin last year that ended in a sixth-placed finish.
“Last year I made one of the worst races of the season in Texas, and this year I want to see if we can be competitive everywhere,” said Rossi, whose runner-up finish last month set a record for point-scoring finishes in Grand Prix racing with 262.
Rossi surpassed the previous record of 261 point-scoring finishes held by Loris Capirossi.
