A
s the season approaches
halfway, the Marquez
camp will be working hard
on keeping calm. I don't mean
the rider. He somehow seems to
rise above such considerations.
Too intelligent, a career of
astounding success tempered
by a single but profound major
setback has taught him to be
philosophical. To take those
slings and arrows of outrageous
fortune as they come.
Or so he says.
Of course, he cares. And in
the future, he might attach more
importance to the numbers than
he currently professes: his 68th
MotoGP win at Assen equaled
Agostini's 500cc-class victories,
and he is closing on the 89 of
all-time leader Valentino Rossi,
who took such pains to make
Marc his deadly enemy.
The current anxiety belongs
to his fans. Because it is in the
nature of the sport, of any sport
but particularly a potentially inju
-
rious one like motorcycle racing,
to
snatch success away without
warning.
Added to this is the unavoid-
able intervention of Old Father
Time—humanity's
implacable
mutual enemy. At 32 (33 next
February), he is the second-old
-
est rider in MotoGP. Only Johann
Zarco,
35 on July 16, is older. At
P148
CN II IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
MARC'S
GREATEST
RIVAL?
OLD FATHER
TIME
Winning is still important for
the "aging" Marc Marquez.
