Marc Marquez retirement explained as Michelin and Ducati respond to Thai GP tyre drama
16:00, 03 Mar
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Andrew McLarneyMotoGP Reporter
Andrew McLarney is an accredited MotoGP reporter with four years experience as a professional writer across the sports and video game industries. His experience as a K1 Premier League competitor evolved into a fascination with all forms of combat sport and eventually motorsport — with MotoGP becoming his primary focus. On top of that he is also an avid follower of MXGP and AMA Supercross/Motocross.
Michelin and Ducati management have given their views on the controversial tyre failure which saw reigning champion Marc Marquez forced to retire from the race.
It was something of a catasrophic afternoon for Ducati at last weekend's Thai Grand Prix in Buriram with both Marquez brothers out, Bagnaia underperforming and the VR46 duo largely out of the picture on Sunday's race.
We had this issue all weekend; many rims came back to our box bent because it was very hot.- Piero Taramasso, Michelin MotoGP Manager
Arguably the biggest disaster of the weekend for the team came just five laps from the end of the race when Marc, who was battling for the podium places against Pedro Acosta, Raul Fernandez and Jorge Martin, went wide at turn four and hit the kerbs hard - causing massive damage to the rear rim and completely destroying the rear tyre in the process.
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The incident wasn't the only concern regarding tyres during the weekend, as Joan Mir was also forced to retire due to a tear in his rear tyre too.
Michelin manager Piero Taramasso gave his thoughts on the incident, and revealed that there were several factors at play which led to the malfunction.
"Marc told us the only mistake he made was running wide. He hit the curb, the rim bent, the air escaped, and the tire deflated. It’s a shame for him, because at that moment he was the fastest on track. We had this issue all weekend; many rims came back to our box bent because it was very hot. The material is very soft and the curbs are very aggressive."
Ducati's Perspective
Elsewhere, Ducati took a more reserved approach to the incident, citing bad luck and a rare mistake as the primary cause for the incident.
"Unfortunately, he went to the kerb at turn four and he broke the rim," said team boss Davide Tardozzi after the race, "That’s why he lost air and he was forced to stop. He hit the edge of the [kerb] and broke the wheel.”
"Unfortunately, he went to the kerb at turn four and he broke the rim," said team boss Davide Tardozzi after the race, "That’s why he lost air and he was forced to stop. He hit the edge of the [kerb] and broke the wheel.”
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Marquez forced to give up the fight with Acosta (Photo: Red Bull Content Pool)
“I don’t remember ever seeing something like that,” he said. “We can say that it’s a mistake, but he’s been really unlucky because many riders went out in turn four and nobody had this problem. But, anyway, it’s like this."
Tardozzi was later spotted on the track in the aftermath of the race to personally inspect the kerb in question:
At the conclusion of the weekend, the Ducati Lenovo team sit in fifth place in the overall championship standings, behind the VR46 team, KTM and the Aprilias.
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