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MotoGP pundit John Hopkins found it strange that Marc Marquez felt that his podium result in Motegi was a surprise.
The Spaniard delivered a brilliant race in the rain and made his way through the field to finish third in the race. This was also Repsol Honda's first podium in a Grand Prix this season.
While Honda has won a race this season with Alex Rins (the LCR Honda rider won the race in Austin), the team has more or less struggled to even challenge for the podium. So much so that Marc Marquez has not been on the podium for the entire season.
The race in Japan was affected by rain and it offered the Spaniard a perfect opportunity to capitalize and get a strong result.
As the rain intensified, Marc Marquez was even closer to Francesco Bagnaia in P2 and was challenging him before the red flag came out. After the race, Marquez termed the podium a surprise.
MotoGP pundit and former racer John Hopkins told TNT Sports that he found the Spaniard's demeanor a bit surprising and felt that this showed how bad the situation was at the Japanese outfit:
"The biggest surprise for me, what I find strange? Hearing Marc say it’s strange for him to be on the podium at Motegi. It just shows the position, the place that Honda are currently in. When Marc says it’s strange to be on the podium?"
He added:
"Those are strange words to me. He rode a great, great race. Honda are iconic in this championship so it’s good to see them back on the podium, but everything is still up in the air.”
Marc Marquez dug deep for that result
Fellow MotoGP pundit Michael Laverty was all praise for Marc Marquez and the manner in which he made a difference on the bike. However, he did touch on how Marc could move to a satellite Ducati next season and the whole situation was a little awkward for him in that sense.
Laverty said
“It could be his last home GP on a Honda. As he said, it’s awkward for him because of the scenario. He’s still giving 100% but all the conversation is about where he’s going next year, not being at home as an HRC rider and continuing his legacy."
He added:
"Marc showed his skill again. He figured it out that the tyres weren’t working with minimal water, then as the rain fell the tyres came to him. He pushed on, dug deep, made clean overtakes.”
It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the Spaniard but it does appear that a split from Honda to Gresini might be on the cards.
