Marc Marquez with manager Emilio AlzamoraMarc Marquez Injury UpdateRepsol Honda reported Wednesday that its reigning MotoGP Champion, Marc Marquez, will not participate in next week’s Bridgestone tire testing at Phillip Island.
The reason? Marquez needs as much time to recover from breaking his right leg last Wednesday during a dirt-track training crash.Following the decision to not participate in the Phillip Island test – which will only feature prototypes and no Open-class machines – Marquez’s manager Emilio Alzamora offered further comment.Alzamora told MotoGP.com that he knows there is a long season ahead, even if Marquez is not 100-percent for the opening round at Qatar March 23.Alzamora said “he had a new scan and things are going well. The bone is ok, it is not displaced and it is healing. Marc made the decision not to go to Australia himself and it’s the wise choice. The championship is 18 rounds long and even if he isn’t 100% fit at the first race the positive point is that he can ride in the opening GP.“It’s only seven days since the injury so the advice from the doctors and the team is to recover properly. Marc is upbeat, but obviously no rider wants to miss testing. The first test of the year was really positive because Marc was very quick and HRC showed they’ve adapted the bike well to the new rules. When we get to Qatar we’ll see how Marc’s condition is in free practice and then we can set objectives.”MotoGP.com reports that on the suggestion that Marquez could have participated in the upcoming Qatar test, which Repsol Honda will not attend, Alzamora commented that the idea was initially explored but that ultimately it would not happen.
