The Repsol Honda rider had been in the limelight for much of the day, saving a big front-end slide in practice, then playing his controv🌳ersial towing cards to advance through Q1 and ta༒ke eighth in Qualifying 2.

The Spaniard still doubted his race pace but delivered one of his “best starts in years” to reach fifth on the opening 🔯lap before slugging it out in a group that included Aleix Espargaro, Marco Bezzecchi, brother Alex and Francesco Bagnaia.

“No, no,” admitted Marc Marquez, when a🙈sked if he expected such a result. “Because yesterday I was 11th but with the rhythm I was very far. Today I was 8th [in qual♕ifying] but with the rhythm very far.

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“But then in the Sprint I was able to start very good🔥, good first lap, overtook some riders and I felt very good in the front. I was not one of the fastest, but I felt very good.”

Marquez actually set the second fastest lap of the ꧙race, slower than only winner Jorge Martin, on 5 of 13 but looked set to finish in fifth until a last lap error by Espargaro suddenly put the Aprilia within striking distance.

Marquez and Espargaro swapped places until the #93 settled their battle by launching his RCV inside at the final corner to claim fourt🌠h.

“I did not win [the battle], Aleix🐻 lost the position because he was one second in front of me more or less and he made a big mistake in Turn 1 and another one in Turn 3,” Marquez said.

“Then I was able to have the chance to fight with him. He overtook me also in a very nice movement from 💟Turn 6 to Turn 7 but then the last turn is a corner that I like!

“I was able to overtake him, stop the bike and… It’s only a 4th place and it is only🐽 a Sprint race but we must enjoy these nice moments with the team.”

The next best Ho𓄧nda rider was Marquez’s🅠 team-mate Joan Mir, in twelfth.

All the Honda ride🧸rs had complained about a lack of acceleration on Friday. In Marquez’s case, they had worked aro༒und the problem rather than solving it.

“What we did is ▨to only make a bike for the braking points,” he revealed. “We can set up diℱfferently the bike, but we are losing always because it is difficult to get the traction.

“Bu🌳t, yeah, what we did is be more stable on the braking points. I am braking later and pushin♛g more the front. More risky. More in the limit, but for the Sprint race it’s possible. For the main race tomorrow it will be more difficult,” he warned.

“Now we have to understand the rear tyre because ꦛour bike with the hard rear I am struggling a lot and we don’t have the stopping [performance] in a straight line. But we need to understand which rear tyre [to race] and then develop the strategy.”

One strategy that again paid off for Marquez was hitching a tow from faster rꦯiders in qualifying, starting with KTM’s Jack Miller in Qualifying 1.

“The target in Q1 was the Gresini riders [not Miller] but I was late. 🥃That is normal: sometimes they a⛦re fast [at leaving the pits].

“Then we went out and we were many riders waiting and I will not be the first ride🌊r🗹 to push!

“With the first tyre I think I was behind Pol Espargaro, and then in the last one I was behind Jack but he was behind Mir who was behind Bastianini. We were many behind one another but I was෴ able to take the profit from that slipstream.”

Miller, who didn’t progress past Qualifying 1, said of the tow: “It didn’t bother me. At th𒐪e end of the day, you can’t let it bother you. If yo𝕴u get frustrated when you’re riding these monsters around, it takes away from what you’re doing.

“It wasn’t the first time and won’t be the last. And I🐈’m not the only victim.”