Marc Márquez forgets the top hat in Cervera

BarcelonaThe Silverstone circuit has not been a good place for Marc Márquez. It wasn't in practice, nor in Saturday's short race, and it definitely hasn't been in this Sunday's long race either. The rider from Cervera, with bad feelings on the bike, has repeated his seventh position from the sprint and has taken a step back in the fight to retain the World Championship. The victory has gone to a magnificent Raúl Fernández.

Marc Márquez's seventh place should be understood as a consolation prize, because even if it's little, it scores points. And because none of the riders ahead of him in the championship have achieved victory. A lesser evil that does not avoid the self-criticism of a rider who got off the bike with a visible look of disappointment. And yet, the start of the race invited dreams. Raúl Fernández escaped alone as leader and Márquez, sixth on the grid, climbed to third place. It was a mirage. The Aprilias were much better bikes than the Ducatis, and little by little he has been losing time and conceding positions. It is strange to see that he was not even fighting with his rivals when they overtook him. A clear sign that things were going badly.

Despite Fernández's solo triumph – who has turned the race into a tribute to the Spanish national football team, World Champions, with the names of the footballers printed on his helmet – the race has been entertaining. Very eventful at the start, with six crashes in the first laps. One of them, that of Ai Ogura, until now second in the championship, who was also not finding the right rhythm at Silverstone. It is not easy to achieve, on British soil, as the data confirms: there have been twelve different winners in the last 12 editions.

Jorge Martín reinforces his lead at Silverstone

Jorge Martín wanted to save tires at the start of the race and by the time he wanted to catch Fernández, it was too late. Meanwhile, third place was an open battle between Marco Bezzecchi and Àlex Márquez. In the middle of the race, everything suggested that Àlex would win the duel, because he had a better rhythm, but just after taking third place, he made a mistake and miraculously saved himself from crashing. He lost time. Despite being able to catch up to Bezzecchi again, he felt the physical strain and couldn't overtake him, thus settling for fourth place. However, a positive result considering that the younger of the Márquez brothers is still recovering after the serious accident he suffered in Montmeló.

MotoGP has returned from vacation and Jorge Martín has reinforced his championship lead. He now has 240 points, 31 more than Bezzecchi (209) and 37 more than Ogura (203). Marc Márquez remains fourth, but now 40 points (200) behind Martinator. The next event is at the end of August in Aragón. A terrain a little more favorable for the rider from Cervera.