VOL. 51 ISSUE 32 AUGUST 12, 2014 P39
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
T
en out of ten, and count-
ing. Marquez the Merci-
less, Marquez the Unstop-
pable. Marquez the Magnificent.
In his second season, the de-
fending World Champion has
made a plaything of the premier
class of motorcycle racing.
His 10th win in the 10-race-old
season, achieved in the some-
what humbling environs of the
world's largest sporting stadium,
made him the first to win 10-in-a-
row since Mick Doohan in 1997.
This win may have required more
hand-to-hand combat than usual
(the opening six laps were more
like Moto3 than MotoGP). But it
was achieved with the same ulti-
mate clarity as the previous nine.
It might be considered becom-
Briefly...
Dorna's official pre-event press con-
ferences generally produce plati-
tudes, but an astute question from
a Spanish girl journalist saw the as-
sembled stars answering what they
admired (or envied) most about
Marc Marquez. The insights were
revealing, if not surprising: admira-
tion aside, the predominant feeling is
envy. Valentino Rossi went first, with
a two-hander. "First, he was already
fast last year." Other riders worried
about how much he might improve in
his second, and "he improved a lot,
with a lot less crashes and a lot less
mistakes, Also, I have to learn from
him how to win in every situation."
For Andrea Dovizioso: "He doesn't
have a negative point. He is fast and
aggressive in any conditions."
Nicky Hayden: "For me it's how he
can ride at the limit without doing
more mistakes – especially in the
race. Doing so many laps, so many
corners on the ragged edge." Jorge
Lorenzo enlarged on the theme: "It
is his capacity to ride on the limit.
You see him almost crash, and he
doesn't crash." Of course, he does
sometimes, but has a capacity to es-
cape injury. "We call him 'The Cat,'
because he always lands on his
feet, whatever happens," said Cal
Crutchlow.
Moto3 points leader Jack Miller
looks increasingly likely to leapfrog
the downbeat Moto2 class and move
directly to MotoGP, on a production
Honda in an expanded LCR team.
This is in line with Honda's strong
interest in the 19-year-old Australian,
whose performance last year on an
under-gunned Moto3 Honda had
already caught HRC's eye, even be-
fore his four wins this year. The Marc
VDS team has abandoned its two-
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