From the Iberian Peninsula, the Repsol Honda Team head in-land for round seven of the 2022 season with Marc Marquez and Pol Espargaro targeting further improvements.
The 2022 MotoGP World Championship season is now well and truly underway as the Grand Prix paddock arrives at the Le Mans circuit in France. Consistently on the calendar since 2000, the French track enjoys an enthusiastic crowd and often produces surprising races with unpredictable weather. For this year’s French Grand Prix, the forecast is looking decidedly more consistent with sun and clear skies currently on the horizon.
Marc Marquez arrives in Le Mans still full of fire after a fighting fourth in the Spanish Grand Prix. Battling hard with Aleix Espargaro and Jack Miller, the eight-time World Champion amazed fans around the world as he made another of his trademark saves during the race. More important than his performance in the race was the test on Monday where Marquez and his team were able to explore several setting and parameters for the new Repsol Honda Team RC213V. With this extra information, Marquez will be hoping to fight at the front of the race once again and potentially add to his three French GP wins and four total podiums in the premier class.
There was no one who put in more work than Pol Espargaro on the Monday Test in Jerez, the #44 completing the most laps of any rider. Espargaro is aiming to put this knowledge to work immediately at the French GP, a race where he has classically enjoyed success. Having only missed the top ten twice in France in the premier class and claiming a podium in the rain-soaked 2020 race, Espargaro’s history speed and the new RC213V have the potential to once again run at the front. The generally cooler conditions of Le Mans should also help Espargaro to show his and the bike’s full potential.
With 44 points, Marc Marquez holds ninth in the MotoGP World Championship and nine points further behind is Pol Espargaro with 35 points.
The Repsol Honda Team’s most recent podium at the French GP came in 2020 when Alex Marquez raced to second in the wet.