Marc Marquez: “Hard to beat because I’m stubborn - no coincidence I’m single!”
The six-time MotoGP champion is vying to equal his rival Valentino Rossi’s tally of titles in 2023, if he can overcome his fraught history of injuries and Repsol Honda’s sub-par bike.
The past two years have been an injury nightmare for Marquez who is the most decorated rider on the current grid by some distance.
"It is no coincidence that I am single,” he joked on Spanish TV. “In the race I'm hard to bear because I'm very stubborn and I have my routines.
“Adrenaline is the only energy that gives him rhythm and motivation.
"I don't like to be relaxed, relaxation bores me. I can't concentrate.
"I have no passion for going to the beach or travelling, my passion is motorcycles. It makes me go to the limit.
“Happiness pervades me only after winning and celebrating with my family.
"I have always been mature for my age, because when I was 12 I was already surrounded by people who by age could be my father or grandfather.
“I grew up surrounded by older people. I never went to summer camps with my friends. But it was my decision."
Marquez was forced to consider an early retirement last summer when he underwent a fourth major arm operation, which has left him with horrendous scars.
But it has also relieved the pain which blighted the early part of last season.
"Before I had surgery on my arm, withdrawal was an option,” he said.
“Now no, I have no more pain... Hell is hard. Because when there is such pain, your character also changes.
“I came from a sports career that looked like that of a superhero and suddenly, overnight, fractures, infections, operations and that's when you can sink. I was screwed."
Marquez will be joined by new teammate Joan Mir, the 2020 world champion with Suzuki, this year.
Honda, who scored zero points in a MotoGP race for the first time in 40 years last season in Germany, must deliver their star man with the machinery capable of challenging Ducati’s dominance.
Francesco Bagnaia enters the year as reigning champion but his teammate Enea Bastianini will be snapping at his heels, and Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo will inevitably be near the front too.
