The "six times longer" of superhero Marc Márquez

BarcelonaMarc Márquez does not know the word impossible. Neither injuries nor crashes at the start of the championship have kept him away from the fight for the MotoGP title, as he confirmed this weekend in Czechia, where he benefited from Bezzecchi's penalty to enter the World Championship fully, placing himself just 40 points behind the Aprillia rider. The sensational triumph of the rider from Cervera has had a double reward.

Aching, tired, but exultant with happiness. This is how Marc Márquez finished the Brno race, in which he had to ride at the limit from the start, with no option to manage his efforts. He had to overcome shoulder problems and, after finishing third in Saturday's short race, this Sunday he put on another riding display, fending off the attacks of an Ai Ogura who, despite starting from pole, had to settle for second place. The podium was completed by Pecco Bagnaia, Márquez's Ducati teammate and winner of Saturday's sprint.

Márquez cuts 32 points from Bezzecchi

Márquez, fifth on the grid, immediately moved into first place. The doubt was how long he could hold on. Because the race felt eternal for him. "The last six laps have been the longest of the entire season," admitted the rider from Cervera, who only managed to cross the finish line with a half-second advantage. But this half-second was enough for the objective and to make Bezzecchi, who seemed to have the title under control but is starting to have doubts halfway through the championship, even more nervous. A rider who on Saturday made a colossal mistake when he chased and hit a marshal after a crash, and who was unable to compete on Sunday. Between the crash in the sprint and the penalty, he leaves Brno with a painful zero. Márquez has cut 32 points in two days.

The World Championship is tightening, as Marc Márquez is not Bezzecchi's only headache, who leads with 180 points. Jorge Martín, seventh in the Czech Republic, is just eight points behind (172), while Di Giannantonio is third (157). Márquez is fourth (140), but with an upward projection, and is demonstrating that, after the injury that forced him to miss the races in Le Mans and Montmeló, including surgery, he is more than capable of closing the gap. As they say at Ducati, "you can't stop believing in him".