Alex Márquez admitted he “suffered” with front-tyre issues during the Portugal MotoGP race, as he battled to secure a hard-fought second place behind Marco Bezzecchi on Sunday.
The Gresini rider had entered the weekend as one of the favourites after topping Friday practice, despite a qualifying crash that left him starting fifth on the grid.
“Honestly speaking, Marco was faster than us today,” Márquez told Crash.net. “From the warm-up, I saw him flying and said, ‘Wow, it will be tough.’ But okay, nothing to lose — we’ll try to go with him.”
Márquez explained that the fast race pace came at a cost: “Eventually, I destroyed my front tyre on the right side. I suffered to keep the second position from Pedro, but I tried my best. Yesterday we were the fastest on track, but today Marco was much better than us.”
The Spaniard credited Bezzecchi and Aprilia’s strong setup for their dominance in Portimão, noting their pace had been evident since last year. “They made the click on Sunday — they were unbeatable. Marco especially had better corner entry, he was able to keep the line, and for that reason, I destroyed the front tyre more. I had a lot of graining because I needed to force the bike too much in the last corner, while Marco was flowing more than me.”
Márquez also pointed to the uneven surface of the Algarve International Circuit as a key factor in the race. “The point where we were struggling a little bit in Australia, all the Ducati guys, was the fast corners with bumps. Here we had the same feeling, and we need to improve for the future.”
Despite the difficulties, the result marked another strong podium for Márquez, who continues to establish himself as a consistent frontrunner this season.
