Honda’s Marc Marquez has piloted a track-derived bike for the first time in seven months in a private test in Barcelona on Tuesday as his recovery continues.
The Spaniard was cleared to “intensify” his training programme last week by doctors that led the procedure to cure the “infected pseudoarthrosis of the right humerus” that was causing the broken arm he sustained in last years Spanish Grand Prix to not heal sufficiently.
Honda released a short video on Twitter this morning of Marquez exiting the pits of the Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya on one of the manufacturer’s MotoGP-derived RC213V-S road bikes, the six-time premier class champion continuing to make rapid progress as he plots a racing return sooner rather than later.
He featured on the provisional entry list for next weekend’s Qatar GP early last week, though this doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll take to the track, with a decision to be made as late as possible as he tries to continue to improve his physical state.
Honda test rider Stefan Bradl is waiting in the wings should Marquez have to wait to make his competition return, while new factory team signing Pol Espargaro will likely lead the squads charge at the Losail International Circuit.
Marquez hasn’t competed in a MotoGP race since crashing from the Spanish GP at Jerez, the broken humerus he sustained in the incident forcing him to miss the rest of the season before undergoing the operation needed to cure the bone condition that afflicted him in December.
He therefore hasn’t taken the chequered flag in any race since claiming victory in the Valencia GP at the conclusion of the 2019 campaign 17 months ago.
