Marquez after Malaysia win: not thinking about the title yet
Spain's Marc Marquez, a Ducati rider, won the MotoGP round in Malaysia and extended his lead in the championship standings. He could clinch a tenth career world title as soon as Qatar, but stresses the work is not done.
Spain's Marc Marquez, a Ducati rider, won the MotoGP round at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia on Sunday. MotoGP is the premier class of motorcycle road racing's world championship. The result strengthened his lead in the overall standings, and he could secure the title as early as the next round in Qatar.
At the end of May, Marquez trailed the then championship leader Marco Bezzecchi by 102 points. He now leads the injured Jorge Martin by 44 points and is 67 points ahead of Bezzecchi.
The race
At Sepang, Marquez executed his strategy perfectly. At the start he passed his brother Alex Marquez, who had begun the race from pole position, and took the lead. He then gradually extended his advantage over the chasing riders. He crossed the line more than four seconds ahead of runner-up Pedro Acosta.
The title fight
In Qatar, Marquez needs to outscore Martin by 30 points and earn eight points more than Bezzecchi can. That would give him a tenth world title in his career and an eighth in the MotoGP class.
The rider says the win means more than an ordinary success, but that plenty of work remains. He explained that he focuses on moments when an opportunity must be seized, and he felt such a moment had arrived in Malaysia. Martin was injured, and Bezzecchi could not be given extra momentum, since upcoming circuits suit him.
Marquez is not thinking about the title yet: he does not want to fall into the trap of believing it is already won. He wants to keep the same approach, as several rounds remain. The team will arrive in Qatar on Thursday, and until then the rider will rest.
