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Many laps, many technical innovations and the same spirit of improvement. Marc Márquez has closed the last 2018 preseason tests of the MotoGP World Championship perhaps without dazzling with his seventh place, but he was very happy with the sensations.
Márquez's main objective during all the preseason tests has been to achieve a good race pace beyond setting a fastest lap. Only the last day of testing in Valencia and Buriram's second has been placed at the top of the table, but for him this is what he cares least about.
"We have a good race pace and that's what I wanted"
Number 93 is very satisfied with how things have gone this winter. "It has been a very positive season," said the Cervera driver after finishing seventh in Qatar, a position that does not worry him in the least because in long runs he has managed to be the most competitive rider on the entire grid. "I am happy because we have improved our rhythm. We may have lost power in one lap but we are stronger in race pace which is what I was looking for ".
Márquez reaffirmed his competitiveness in race drills by steadily stabilizing his times at 1:55 low and 1:54 medium; " it was what i was looking for to achieve with a used tire to be able to be close to the Ducati with the best rhythms, "he pointed out. And the thing is that normally Losail is not a track that is particularly good for him, so he has had his objectives very clear.
The good feelings of the Honda rider confirm that for the first time in recent years they have been able to work on being competitive when the traffic lights go out instead of solving the problems that have usually been encountered in the preseason. This year the RC213V is a much more capable bike from the start, the engine is more powerful than before and also transfers energy to the ground much more effectively, with traction.
Still, Márquez and his team keep trying different solutions. The new engine conditions the operation of the entire motorcycle, so in total it has rolled 75 laps on the last day (the most on the third day, 181 laps in total) trying to understand how the 2018 prototype works. " You have to be tactful. You have to be very tactful because the new engine is a bit aggressive, "he commented with a laugh.
After the Qatar tests, the teams have to define which engine they are going to use so that their development freezes throughout the season. From there, no new features can be introduced, but Honda has already made the decision and Márquez hopes that throughout the year they will be able to go. fine-tuning its performance with minor adjustments.
