Marc Márquez baffled by sudden tyre trouble in Silverstone sprint
Marc Márquez suffered unexpected rear tyre degradation in the British MotoGP sprint, dropping from fourth to ninth place. His Ducati team is now searching for the cause ahead of Sunday's main race.
During the British MotoGP sprint race, while Aprilia celebrated a historic podium finish, the Ducati camp was left puzzling over Marc Márquez's unexpected troubles. The Spanish rider had fought his way up to fourth place, but a sudden issue with his rear tyre caused him to lose several positions, and he eventually crossed the line in ninth, scraping together just one championship point.
A surprise after a smooth practice
Márquez said that neither free practice nor the pre-race sessions had given any indication of such difficulties. Speaking after the finish, he admitted disappointment, describing the sprint as an entirely new experience — the tyre's rubber began peeling away and losing grip much faster than his rivals'. He noted he was not the only rider affected, but that he suffered the most because the drop-off happened extremely quickly. Once he had slipped to sixth or seventh place, he struggled to control the bike and risked crashing.
Peeling, not wear
Analysing the cause, Márquez stressed that the issue was not related to incorrect temperature or normal tyre wear. In his view, the root cause was a specific peeling or graining of the tyre surface, which prevented the rubber from working within its proper temperature window, even though readings matched the expected range for the asphalt temperature. He also dismissed the idea that Michelin had brought an unsuitable compound.
The team must now analyse the data to determine whether the problem lies in the bike's setup or in the specific stresses created by the Silverstone track surface, in hopes of avoiding a repeat in Sunday's main race, which carries significant weight in the championship battle.
