until Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League
Honda test rider Stefan Bradl has dialled back comments he made earlier on Saturday about how long his tenure as reigning world champion Marc Marquez’s replacement will last, after originally stating categorically that he would sit in for the Spaniard at Repsol Honda for the remainder of the 2020 MotoGP season.
Speaking to German TV station Servus, which he normally works for as an analyst while not racing in MotoGP, Bradl said that he will race not only this weekend at Aragon but also at the final three rounds of the season at Valencia and Portimao.
“Well, I am going to finish the season,” the German confirmed. “I heard this yesterday. I am not sure if I am officially allowed to talk about this, but it is a fact. I will be finishing the season.”
He then dialled those comments back at the end of the day’s action at the Teruel Grand Prix, though, telling journalists that despite earlier saying that he had received confirmation of the move, it was in fact just his own speculation.
“I said that I think that I’m going to finish the season,” he clarified, “and whatever else is something that you have to ask [team boss] Alberto [Puig] or HRC.”
The news adds fuel to the flames when it comes to the reigning world champion’s comeback. Marquez has been absent from MotoGP since breaking his right arm in the opening round of the season at Jerez in July and then exacerbating the injury by attempting (and failing) to return to action a week later, and his condition has remained a source of constant speculation since then.
He required a second operation following the abortive attempt to ride at the Andalucian Grand Prix after over-stressing the titanium plate in his arm and eventually snapping it days later when opening a French door at his home.
It has been speculated that Marquez sustained damage not only to the humerus bone in his arm, but also to the radial nerve which runs alongside it. This would be a serious injury, one with potential to end a racer’s career in the worst-case scenario, and it seems that it’s the nerve shock which has delayed his recovery.
And Bradl’s comments come at an inopportune time for Honda, only day after the manufacturer was forced to deny rumours that Marquez was facing a third surgery and potentially an even longer road to recovery.
“The Repsol Honda Team would like to confirm that Marc Marquez’s recovery is proceeding as planned,” Honda said in a statement earlier this week that didn’t directly address the allegations. “While it is a long and intense recovery, Marc and those his team have no cause for concern.”
