Ducati: Tardozzi Takes a Hard Line on Marc Marquez

From Japan, Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi sends a message to all of Marc Marquez’s rivals: “We know Marc will be on the attack starting here at Motegi. It’s clear that we’ll try to finish ahead of our rivals here, but ultimately our goal is the same as in every race: to make it onto the podium.”

Ducati has resolved the brake issue that had hampered Marc Marquez in Austria: “We really hope it doesn’t happen again. But let’s look ahead. The Red Bull Ring was a missed opportunity, but it’s part of the 22-race season. We’ve identified the problem, we know what happened, and we’ve made sure it won’t happen again,” concluded the Ducati executive.

In an interview with AS, Marquez spoke about his current situation: “If you had told me eight races ago that I’d be 12 points behind the leader, I would have gladly accepted that. There’s no such thing as a miracle: miracles happen by chance, but miracles in results require daily work, and without that work, a miracle is impossible. If you have passion, you can handle bad days, injuries, sacrifices… and you know I’ve had plenty of those. It’s passion that gets you back on your feet, that pushes you to the limit.”

On Thursday, Márquez had clarified his new strategy: “Now we have to attack all the time, at every track. If something like what happened in Austria happens, we’ll have to salvage what we can. But now every point counts.” The rider from Cervera, chasing his tenth world title, knows that Japan could be the turning point in a season finale that promises to be white-hot.