Marc Márquez Returns to Argentina as MotoGP Leader

Argentina returns to the MotoGP calendar after its cancellation in 2024. At that time, Javier Milei had just begun his presidency, and his infamous chainsaw cut down the only Grand Prix on South American soil. But after that blank year, the MotoGP paddock is back at the Termas de Río Hondo circuit, along with one of Marc Márquez's favourite venues, despite not having set foot there since 2019. The following two years were missed due to the pandemic, and in 2022 and 2023, the Cervera native was recovering from injuries. It's been six years since the passionate Argentine fans have been able to enjoy the eight-time world champion, who appeared wearing an Argentine national team jersey with his number, '93', on the back. "You need courage to wear Messi or Maradona's jersey. I don't dare," Márquez remarked.

The Spaniard's trajectory in Argentina is a mix of successes, disappointments, and controversies. He won in 2014 when this circuit debuted on the calendar, but a year later, he crashed after a collision with Rossi, marking the beginning of their subsequent rivalry. He repeated his victory in 2016, crashed while leading in 2017, and in 2018, everything went wrong: his bike stalled at the start, he was penalised with a 'ride through', and during his comeback, he knocked Rossi down, prompting the Italian to say that the Spaniard "had destroyed this sport", resulting in a 30-second penalty. The following season, Márquez's last visit to Argentina, he redeemed himself with an overwhelming victory, finishing 10 seconds ahead of Rossi, who came second.

"I usually do very well in Argentina. It's a circuit I like, where I've experienced everything, races won with a big lead, and others where I've crashed, making stupid mistakes," the MotoGP leader recalled at the press conference marking the official start of the Grand Prix. Marc Márquez appeared before the media flanked by the two riders who joined him on the podium in Thailand, his brother Álex and his teammate Pecco Bagnaia. Both agreed that Marc was the favourite on this track, but he preferred to remain cautious. "We must keep our feet on the ground. I feel relaxed, comfortable, good with the team, communication flows, but there are 21 races left."

One of the surprises on Thursday was Jorge Martín's intervention at the press conference. The reigning world champion was not present, as he continues to recover from his triple fracture in his left hand, but he did appear via videoconference to answer a couple of questions and receive encouragement from his rivals. The Madrid rider took the opportunity to confirm that he will not be at the next Grand Prix of the Americas and is doubtful for the following one in Qatar. "It's taking me longer to recover than I'd like. I won't be in Austin, and I'm not sure if I'll be in Qatar. I'd like to do some tests before returning to competition because I don't feel too well," Martín confirmed, admitting that he was not in a good place physically or mentally.

In the Thailand race, rookie Ai Ogura and his teammate Marco Bezzecchi scored good points for Aprilia, demonstrating that the other Italian brand is the closest to Ducati today. Meanwhile, KTM struggled, especially Pedro Acosta, who crashed on the first Sunday of the year. Honda and Yamaha showed their growth, although not with their stars, Joan Mir and Fabio Quartararo, but with two of their satellite riders, Johann Zarco and Jack Miller.

The Spaniards will find it very difficult to match in Argentina the results achieved in Thailand, where they secured victories in all three races and seven of the nine Sunday podiums. Manu González in Moto2 and José Antonio Rueda in Moto3 arrive as leaders in their respective categories, in a Grand Prix that could be very emotional for Spanish motorcycling, as a win by Marc Márquez would equal the 90 world victories of the late Ángel Nieto, the rider who forever changed the history of this sport in Spain.