Fernandez steps aside
For the press conference presenting the Aragon weekend, MotoGP chose to have four of the top six riders in the standings speak. But while Jorge Martin, Marco Bezzecchi, and Marc Marquez all more or less explicitly referred to the championship battle, Raul Fernandez stepped aside from the matter. The winner at Silverstone in fact does not feel he is in the running for the big prize, despite the fact that arithmetically his 56-point deficit from the top is large but does not represent an insurmountable lead with still 370 points to be awarded.
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“Everyone thinks I can fight for the title, but I don’t feel like a rider fighting for the title – admitted with great sincerity the Trackhouse team rider – I always explain that I just try to do my best. I think I am a rider who can be up front in some races, but who can also make a mistake, because I don’t have the experience that my rivals have right now. Marc was world champion last year, Jorge was two years ago, and Marco was third in the championship last year. I haven’t felt competitive for a title since 2021, so for me we are not contenders for the title yet. We are simply enjoying the moment, then we will see what the situation will be in the last 3-4 races“.
Uncertain prediction
Fernandez was then asked a decidedly more ‘tricky’ question, in which he was asked to indicate who among Martin, Bezzecchi, and Marquez he thinks has the best chance of becoming world champion. Fernandez’s reply, however, was a diplomacy manual: “This question is really difficult for me, because my idol when I was younger was Marc and I have seen many of his races, but this year it is really hard to pick a rider. If I had to choose one for the first part of this season I would definitely name Marco, while if I had to choose one for what has been done in the last races it would be Marc. If instead I had to choose one for the whole season so far I would take Jorge – he concluded smiling – so I wouldn’t really know what will happen this year. I wouldn’t bet and certainly not with my own money“.
