After Austria "bucket list", Marc Marquez expects “challenging Friday” in Hungary

After finally ticking a Red Bull Ring win off his “bucket list”, Marc Marquez now gets the chance to add another circuit to his victory tally with MotoGP’s debut at Balaton Park.

No official testing has taken place at the Hungarian circuit, hosting the country’s first grand prix since 1992, but the six Ducati riders sampled the tight, stop-go layout on superbikes during the summer break.

Marquez arrives in Hungary with a commanding 142-point title lead, having won the last 12 races in a row, since Silverstone in May.

“I'm very happy, I finally got the win in Austria!” Marquez said after his victory over surprise nearest rival Fermin Aldeguer on Sunday.

“It was missing from my bucket list and I'm also very happy to have done it with Ducati. They've overtaken me for three consecutive years right at the last corner before the chequered flag.

“That said, we'll get back on track at Balaton, a track where we have no reference points other than the data from the Panigale V4S.

“Obviously, it will be a different story; we're expecting a slightly more challenging Friday than usual with many unknowns, this time not just related to the weather.”

As is standard for a new circuit, Michelin will bring an additional third rear tyre option, alongside three fronts.

Meanwhile, Marquez’s team-mate Francesco Bagnaia is looking to reset after a bruising Austrian weekend.

The Italian retired from the Sprint due to severe rear-grip instability, then slumped from second to eighth in the grand prix, finishing 12s slower than his winning time a year earlier.

“I'm happy to get back on track straight away and put the Austrian GP behind me,” Bagnaia said.

“After a good Friday, we struggled. We'll continue analysing the data and get back to work. On the Balaton track, we're all starting from scratch. As Ducati, we need to take advantage of having ridden here in early August.

“We need to understand the real limit with a bike like the Desmosedici GP, which, compared to the Panigale V4S, has much more potential.”

Bagnaia previously warned that the slow, twisty layout may not even require sixth gear on a MotoGP bike.