Marquez stands by bold MotoGP title claim after Silverstone struggles

The nine-time world champion saw his pursuit of Aprilia’s trio of championship leaders knocked back by a seventh-place race finish and ninth-place sprint.

Marquez didn’t look like himself at all as he struggled to battle his rivals, and it was a similar story for most of the Ducatis in a British Grand Prix where the Aprilias soared.

Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez took the Grand Prix win while Jorge Martin extended his title lead and Marco Bezzecchi showed he’s certainly up for the fight.

The race was far from promising for either Marquez or Ducati, and came after the Spaniard had started playing title mind games.

Pre-race, the 33-year-old tried to pile pressure on his rivals, saying he was the title favourite.

He even channeled Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen, saying another title ‘wouldn’t change his life, but would change theirs’.

That quote was put to him in his post-race media duties with DAZN and he had to force a smile, replying: "I'm still the favourite. Come on, man."

Marquez did, however, justify his comments, explaining that he expected an off-weekend from Ducati, more specifically, the factory squad.

The no.93 finished behind brother Alex on his Gresini and Fabio Di Giannantonio on a VR46, both with Ducati power.

Marquez explained: "My bike is the same as Alex's. He was faster with his riding style, as was Diggia. We haven't found the right way to be as consistent and strong as them in the race.

There was another factor too, no slip-ups from his competitors.

Despite his legendary talent and astonishing comeback, Marquez has still needed failures from his rivals to come back into the title fight.

Aprilia factory riders Martin and Bezzecchi have been particularly profligate, but the pair both put in absolutely solid showings around Silverstone.

Marquez finished: “It's the same thing I've been saying all along - we have to improve if we want to fight for the championship.