2018 MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez says he lost a “lot of time from my training, of my life” to the shoulder dislocation the Honda rider suffered at the start of the season.
Marquez revealed he dislocated his left shoulder while training earlier this year, and that it continued to do so “easier” during the season – most famously during qualifying in Valencia, where he missed pole by just 0.130 seconds despite popping his shoulder out in a tumble at the star of Q2.
Speaking in an interview with motogp.com, Marquez admits the injury was “on the limit” in the second half of the season, and that he tried to “stabilise” his shoulder to “avoid” going in for an operation – which he will have in the winter.
“This year I dislocated the shoulder at the start of the season while training at home, with the motorbike,” Marquez began.
“Then again at the circuits with some crashes, and then every time [it was dislocating] easier. I lose a lot of time from my training, of my life with the shoulder this year.
“And it's true in the last part of the season, the second part of the season, it was on the limit.
“So sometimes I was not training at home with the motorbike because of the shoulder, sometimes I was not training on the gym because of the shoulder.
“I was training at home, but not how I would have liked. I was working a lot during the year to try to fix, to try stabilise, to avoid the operation.
“But now finally I cannot avoid, and I will take the operation.”
Marquez says he did not disclose his injury publicly to not let onto his rivals he was not “100 percent in some races”, while also hiding the fact he dislocated the shoulder on occasion from his Honda team.
“Sometimes you need to keep some secrets… I mean, not secrets, but why you can't say, because then your opponents know you are struggling with the shoulder,” he admitted.
“In some races I wasn't in 100 percent physical condition, and then I was waiting behind to attack on the last laps because I was not 100 percent in physical condition.
“So this is something you sometimes keep in your box, and you don't say nothing. And it's true sometimes I dislocate, and even my team that they know everything, I just say 'it's just pain, but not much'.”
Despite the injury, Marquez won nine races across the 19-grands prix season, and wrapped up his fifth MotoGP title with three rounds to spare in Japan, ending the campaign 76 points clear.
