Marc Marquez has made a thinly-veiled comment about his MotoGP title rival Jorge Martin, saying "if you're fast, you don't need team orders."
During qualifying for the Indonesian GP, Ducati star Marquez followed Martin out of the pits, ready to make his rival nervous in an attempt to unsettle him. The move worked quite well for the reigning world champion, who managed to qualify ahead of the Aprillia in fourth place.
The weekend ended in a 'draw' on points, as both left Mandalika just as they had arrived, separated by two points in the overall standings.
Ahead of the Australian GP, Marquez took advantage of a question about the possibility of team orders at Ducati to try to put pressure on Aprilia's Martin.
"If you have speed, you don't need them. You need them if you don't have it," he said on MotoGP's official website.
Since returning from his shoulder operation in Hungary, Marquez has almost always been the first Ducati across the finish line, the fastest and the only rider from the brand capable of fighting for victories, rendering a strategy of team orders between its riders ineffective. Furthermore, Alex Marquez himself said that "it's too early" for such strategies when Motorsport.com asked him about it in Indonesia.
Marc Marquez, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / Getty Images
However, with four fast riders in its stable, Aprilia must assess the situation very carefully. At the last round in Indonesia, the Noale manufacturer achieved a historic 1-2-3-4 result, with all its bikes crossing the finish line ahead of the rest. This was despite championship leader Martin managing only third place, losing nine valuable points.
Marco Bezzecchi, who trails team-mate Martin by 46 points, considers himself perfectly capable of still fighting for the championship, even more so if the Qatar GP ultimately takes place.
The Italian does not even want to hear about team orders. "I don't attach much importance to it. Right now, it doesn't affect us. If they tell us something, we'll listen and see how to act. For the moment, nothing has been said," he said.
However, in Indonesia, Aprilia made it clear that it would have to consider enforcing team orders at some point, without specifying a certain race.
Marquez does not need team orders
Marquez is aware that Ducati does not currently have a rider who is consistently fast enough to help him take points away from the Aprilias, and understands that he will have to face the battle against the Noale bikes practically on his own.
This Thursday, ahead of the Australian GP, Marquez was asked about Aprilia using team orders to 'help' Martin in his fight for the title and whether Ducati could take a similar step.
"I will always say that we are a team and I will try, as always, to give my best with Ducati and my team," he told MotoGP.com. "As for team orders, if you have speed, you don't need them. You need them if you don't have it," he said, in a clear reference to his rival.
"We'll see. For now, I'm focused on myself and I'll try to give 100%. We'll see if we can take on the entire Aprilia contingent."
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