With an end to Honda’s current competitive woes nowhere in sight, Marquez has done little to quell talk of a sensational switch to satellite Ducati machinery, which would entail ending his contract with the marque with which he has spent his entire premier class career.
After a disappointing first test with the 2024 prototype Honda at Misano, Marquez said he would make up his mind about his future “around India or Japan”, referring to last weekend’s inaugural Indian Grand Prix and this weekend’s Japanese round at Motegi.
FEATURE: Why Honda won't stand in Marquez's way if he wants to leave
Ahead of Honda’s home race, Marquez remained tight-lipped about which direction he will go next season, only revealing that he has ‘no doubts’ about the best thing to do.
“In my mind I am quite clear,” stated Marquez when asked if he already had made up his mind about where he would be riding next season.
“About the mental side, I don’t have any doubts about myself, or what is best for the situation.
“We are working very hard together [with Honda], not only here but since the last races, to find the best [solution] and to have a better future for the project and to have the best results as soon as possible.
“The target is the same: find the best way and the best mode to improve the project for the future.”
However, Marquez clarified that there will be no official announcements on his future this weekend at Honda’s home track.
"There will be no news on this matter this weekend,” he said. “It is true, as has been said, that there will be meetings, but as there were [also] last year or two years ago.
“In the end the Honda and HRC bosses come [to the circuit] and they always want to see the riders, talk to them and see how the situation is.”
Marquez was evasive when asked whether anything Honda could say to him during the Motegi weekend could convince him to stay with the marque for next season.
“Maybe I’m convinced already,” he quipped. “I never said right or left. Just I said I want to find the best solution and I want the best for the project.
“That is where we are working together because my relationship with Honda is not [just that of a] rider and manufacturer.
“It’s a special relationship, many years together. They gave to me a lot of things, I gave to them a lot of things.”
