Three time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez bas arrived in Motegi, the first in a challenging three-race back-to-back flyaway stint that includes the Australian Grand Prix next weekend and the Malaysian GP the weekend after.
However, this weekend's race is Honda's home Grand Prix, and the Spaniard has arrived on a high after having achieved a fantastic win at the Aragon Grand Prix three weeks ago with teammate Dani Pedrosa making it a one two for the Repsol Honda team..
This powerful win at his home race extended Marquez's Championship lead to 16 points over nearest rival Andrea Dovizioso and 28 over Maverick Viรฑales in third place.
As for Motegi, Marc has enjoyed brilliant results in the past and is only one of two, the other being his teammate, rider on the current grid that has managed to win at Motegi in all three classes.
Marc has also clinched two of his MotoGP World titles there, in 2014 and last year, when he also took his first MotoGP win at the circuit.
Marc has 3 wins here,ย 1ร125 (2010), 1xMoto2 (2012), 1xMotoGP (2016)โplus 3 podiums and 2 pole positions, a tally he s aiming to increase this weekend as well as his championship lead.
โThere are four GPs to go in the season, and we must give 100% at every one, starting with the three flyaway rounds,โ he said. โThese races are always demanding due to the different time zones and conditions, and this year with the Championship so close, they'll be even more of a challenge. The most important thing for us is that since Montmelรณ, we've been on the podium in every race but Silverstone.โ
โWe've done a good job of managing different conditions and different circuits, which gives us confidence and shows that we're at a good level everywhere. We have some great memories in Japan, because we won last year and got the title there twice, but every season is a new story and we must remain focused and ready to handle every situation.โ
โTrack conditions in Motegi can vary dramatically, and we'll have to work hard on the setup to find a good compromise for the hard acceleration and braking. We'll give our best effort and push hard to get another good result in front of Honda's home fans.โ
The Twin Ring Motegi circuit also celebrates a special milestone this year, which is the 20th anniversary of its opening.
