Marquez seeks to start over at Silverstone

LONDON : There is an old saying in motorsport that to finish first, first you have to finish and six-times MotoGP champion Marc Marquez needs no reminding after failing to complete a grand prix this year.

After a season of crashes, injuries and absences, the Spaniard said on Thursday he would be going into this weekend's British round at Silverstone with a fresh focus.

"This second part of the season I think and I believe I need to approach in a different way than the first part of the season," he told Reuters.

The 30-year-old factory Honda rider, who last won in September 2021, has scored points in Saturday sprints - but only a meagre 15 - and is 19th in the overall standings after missing five of eight grands prix.

Marquez still believed he could win again, and maybe even challenge for another title one day, but first he needed to go back to basics.

"I am coming here in Silverstone with the mentality to find the base(line). To not exaggerate, to not do crazy things," he added, while admitting there was only so much he could control.

"The thing is people say don’t take a risk but the last rider on the MotoGP grid is taking a risk on the bike. You need to push and everybody is super-fast and super-good in MotoGP," he said.

"I need to rebuild my confidence, I need to find a way. In Assen it was one of the hardest moments in my career on the mental side. So now it’s time to rebuild all these things.

"Sometimes you need to approach in a different way the races and try to be a little more calm and try to finish more races," he added.

CIRCLE OF FRUSTRATION

Marquez withdrew from the Dutch TT at Assen in June after finishing 17th in a Saturday sprint. In Germany, the round before, he crashed five times.

The Spaniard said he had