When MotoGP made its last big technical swi✨tch in 2016 - from Bridgestone to Michelin tyres and a standard ECU - Marc Marquez was on the podium in the opening Qatar race and won next time in COTA.

That perhaps puts some perspective on the magnitude of the changes made to the Hond🐓a RC213V thisꦅ season, a bike that Marquez says is "so different from previous years, it's almost like I changed manufacturer.

"It is completely different, but without a doubt, we will work t🔯o adapt. It's a new challenge."

Marquez's hurdles are not just technical of course, having battled serious arm, shoulder and eye injuries for the past two seasons. But it was still 🐷a surprise to see a Repsol Honda rider without the #93 leading for lap after lap at last Sunday's season-opener.

Pol Espargaro equalled his podium tally from the whole of 2021 withꩵ an eventual third place at Lusail, just 1.4s from Gresini Ducati race winner Enea Bastianini with KTM's Brad Binder in-between.

Marquez meanwhiওle was forced to settle for fifth, meaning a rare team-m🦂ate defeat without some kind of incident, injury or weather interruption coming into play.

"I didn't have any problems about physical condition, I didn't feel pain. Just there were four riders 🍬faste♓r than us," Marquez admitted on Sunday evening.

Instead, it's adapting to the new rear-gr🍰ip ori﷽entated RCV that is holding Marquez back.

"We are discovering different things with this new🍎 bike, a💞nd since I started at the first test we improved, especially at Mandalika," he said.

"[I♕n Qatar] we didn't touch the bike a lot, because it was the first race and I don't want ♊to lose the way. We just concentrated on the racing line and tyres. And in Mandalika we will continue that process to adapt the bike to my riding style."

Marquez's biggest issue at present was clearly visible when he repeatedly ran wide in Lusail; this year's rearward shift in grip means he can't attack into corners like he used to, while Espargaro 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:is able to use 🅠;much m💞ore rear brake.

"It's a big change, the way♏ to ride the bike is different, but the potential is there," Marquez said.

The fr𓆏ont-end problem is also why Marquez, unlike Espargaro, does not have the aerodynamic side pods on his homologated fairing.

"I'm pushing the front a lot already, if I put those, I'm pushing even more🔯," he said.

"But this doesn't make the difference. Where we𒁏 need to find the di♐fference is to try to understand the front.

"Mandalika will be better – better in termsꦆ of the result I don't know, but it will be easier to understand th♐ings, because you can work in the morning and in the afternoon sessions.

"Here in Qatar it was more diffi♛cult and this is also a very special circuit, so now we will understand more in Mandalika, Argentina and Austin where we are."

But the 29-year-old made clear: "The pressure is always on because my goal is to 💎fight for the World Championship... I think consistency is going to be key this year."

The good news for Marquez is that he still left Qatar having outscored fellow pre-season tit💝le favourites such as reigning champion Fabio Quartararo (ninth), 2020 champion Joan Mir (sixth) and title runner-up Francesco Bagnaia (DNF).