– Marc Marquez has repeatedly emphasized that he no longer wants to talk about his right arm. However, the release of a photo on Instagram showing his battered right shoulder was a clear intentional change of strategy.
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If everyone who regularly works with Marc Marquez agrees on one thing, it is that none of his actions are left to chance. This applies to every area of his life.
This is especially true for his public image, which he places great importance on: in 2022, Alex and Marc Marquez founded the management company Vertical with Jaime Martinez Recasens.
Vertical offers comprehensive services in the areas of image, communication, and sponsorship management as well as legal, financial, and investment advice.
Against this background, it is obvious that the picture the Spaniard posted on his Instagram profile last week was not the result of a spontaneous whim.
There was a clear intention behind this photo, as the publication itself could be interpreted as a contradiction to what Marc Marquez had said throughout the year.
“I want to try not to talk about my arm because it is what it is, and I have to ride with it,” he had repeated on several occasions, as the media kept bringing up the topic again and again.
The Instagram post ran exactly counter to this supposed intention to leave the topic behind. And this suggests a conscious change of strategy.
Silverstone caused a change of strategy
The new strategy took shape two weeks earlier in Silverstone. Because the layout of the track mercilessly exposed Marc Marquez’s physical weakness.
The Ducati rider had spent most of the summer break preparing to compete at the British Grand Prix with an arm as well recovered as possible, after a break of more than three weeks.
In practice, however, this proved much more difficult than expected. Marc Marquez finished the sprint on Saturday in ninth place, almost 14 seconds behind winner Jorge Martin (Aprilia).
Afterwards, he said: “In the sprint, you usually go flat out from start to finish, like in qualifying. For some reason, I couldn’t do that this time.”
He finished the Grand Prix in Silverstone in seventh place. When he was then directly asked if this result could be explained by the limitation of his right arm, he dodged the answer.
“The reason is myself. It is what it is, and I have to deal with it. It’s a matter of endurance.” At that time, Marc Marquez did not want to name his arm as the main reason for his poor performance.
The nine-time motorcycle world champion has never made an excuse for a poor result. Only the inside video that Ducati publishes on YouTube after every Grand Prix revealed the details.
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Only then did the general public realize how severely limited he had actually been riding in Silverstone. “I was about to crash because I had no control over my right arm,” Marquez told the engineers in the box at the time.
Why was he not just as clear less than an hour earlier when journalists asked him directly afterwards? “Because Marc doesn’t look for excuses, especially not in public,” says a voice from the Ducati rider’s circle.
In Silverstone, Marquez began to accept his new reality as it is and will remain. His intention was always to remove any excuse related to his physical condition from the equation.
Marc Marquez wants to be transparent
However, on that Sunday he had to realize that the impact of this shoulder on his performance will be so significant in the future that it can no longer be ignored.
“Marc has accepted that he will continue to be asked about his arm, and he wants to be transparent. He wants people to see what he himself sees in the mirror every day and get an idea of how he really is.”
“It is not an excuse, it is his reality,” clarifies this voice from his close circle. That is why Marc Marquez published this photo on Instagram to show the public what his right shoulder looks like.
His trusted doctor Dr. Samuel Antuna also spoke out publicly and explained in an interview with El Periodico the harsh reality of the condition of the right shoulder.
“Marc’s right arm is severely limited in strength, especially in the biceps area. I think the expression that Marc is currently riding with one and a half arms pretty much captures the current state of his right arm.”
The doctor referred to the shock Marc Marquez experienced in Great Britain when he realized that the room for improvement was smaller and slower than he himself had predicted.
“It is still developing, there is room for improvement, because the last operation was only three months ago, and the biceps will continue to improve. But you don’t recover as quickly and as well at 33 as you do at 22.”
“Marc will find it a bit harder to improve, but he is used to difficulties. No one has ever given him anything,” said his trusted doctor Dr. Antuna.
Marc Marquez has already made it clear that he is fully focused on this tenth world championship title, which would be his eighth in MotoGP. But if it doesn’t work out, it wouldn’t be a drama for him.
“I am already at peace with myself after becoming world champion again last year. One more world title will not change my life,” he has said on several occasions.
Back to the photo of his arm: This willingness to be transparent, mentioned above, applies not only to the fans but also to his rivals. Now they know the condition Marc Marquez is in, who has won four of the last six races, including three double wins, and has taken 66 points from the championship leader.
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