Marquez: If I didn’t try, I wouldn’t sleep!

Marc Marquez has admitted he paid scant attention to the connotations for his world championship bid as he launched an audacious final corner move on title rival Andrea Dovizioso, before cheekily stating, “If [I didn't try it] I cannot go to sleep quiet.”

Along with Dovizioso, the reigning world champion lit up the Austrian Grand Prix in an absorbing 28-lap encounter, during which the pair repeatedly swapped the lead before a nail-biting, final lap showdown. As is often the case, Marquez had saved the best for last.

Despite sitting four places ahead of nearest title contender Maverick Viñales, Marquez decided to risk it all at the final corner, his heart-stopping dive so nearly enough to turn a breathless encounter in his favour.

And while he emerged second best, Marquez could fall back on a number of positives; not only Viñales' own struggles, but the vast improvement in performance from the same round a year ago, when he struggled to a distant fifth place finish.

“Of course, today on the last lap I was thinking about everything, just the championship I forget,” Marquez joked. “I was pushing my 100%. I decide to make all in because I knew that a victory was very important but even a second place is important.

“Last year we struggled a lot here. This year we were much closer to Ducati riders, but today Dovi especially in the last laps had little bit more, this little bit. I was able to be there for the two left corners. I was losing everywhere, just two left corners I was much faster than him, maybe because he choose the soft option.

“Then in the end I arrive in the limit. I try on the last corner because if not I cannot go to sleep quiet. I need to try. I try and was like this. It was risky, but in the end happy because these 20 points are important.

“I was thinking to overtake him the previous one, like he say, but he close the door. There already during the race I had a few warnings because another thing is that today increase the track temperature maybe ten degrees with the sun.

“I was struggling a lot the front tyre. I was thinking to go to the hard one but I didn’t try during the weekend so I was not able to take this risk. He close the door perfect but then the last corner I try. He understand really good what’s going on. He make an undercut and just overtook me on the acceleration side. It was normal because he prepare really good.”

Seeing his championship lead grow from 14 points to 16 was clearly the source of some satisfaction to the 24-year old. But engaging in a race as spectacular as this was another.

“I think it was a really, really impressive race, really exciting,” he said. “We were 300kph with Dovi just two fingers with fairing and fairing. Inside the adrenaline is amazing. One time I touch his rear wheel on turn two. Was [on the] limit.

“We survived the race. We are second. If you say to me in Thursday that I will finish second, it was a really great result. Happy because we increased the championship points. Happy because the target is there, try to finish in the podium every race and try to be very consistent in all the conditions in all circuits.”