Bengaluru, October 24: As the FIM MotoGP World Championship reaches its business end, Marc Marquez heads to Malaysia with a chance to defend his title.
With two rounds to go and a maximum 50 points on offer, the Reposl Honda rider, who won the previous round in Australia has a handy 33-point lead over his nearest rival Andrea Dovizioso of Ducati.
✊🏼✊🏼✊🏼🏁🏁🏁 #AustralianGP #MotoGP @MotoGP @FanClubMM93 pic.twitter.com/PjapgICKkm
— Marc Márquez (@marcmarquez93) October 23, 2017
A victory in Malaysia on Sunday (October 29) and a non-podium finish for his Italian rival will effectively settle things in favour of Marquez.
"I'm happy of course to go to Malaysia having won at Phillip Island. I knew that it was very important to get a good result in Australia and try to open a bit of a gap before the Sepang race," said Marquez.
The Spaniard has won twice across all classes in Malaysia and once in MotoGP (2014).
The only cause of concern for Marquez is the typical Malaysian extreme weather conditions.
Rain will be once again a strong probability, while extremely hot temperatures and physically demanding sessions will surely be a factor to deal with.
He has also got to reconcile to the fact that it is circuit where Dovizioso won last year.
"Sepang, which is a demanding round, and where Andrea (Dovizioso) won last season. One of the main thing there is the humidity. And the high temperatures of course. I think it's one of the more difficult race under the point of view of the physical conditions," Marquez said.
The 24-year-old was banking on the positives though.
"One good thing is that the tarmac is good now as it has be re-surfaced not long ago. The grip also is nice. I'll see how the situation will be and will try to manage it at the best for the race."
Marquez in Malaysia
2 wins
125cc (2010)
MotoGP (2014)
1 podium
4 pole positions