Marc Marquez’s remarkable ability to compete at the highest level of MotoGP has taken on a new perspective after his surgeon revealed just how severely his right arm has been affected by years of injury and surgery.
Samuel Antuna, one of Marquez’s surgeons, has provided a stark insight into the physical limitations the six-time MotoGP champion continues to manage. Despite those problems, Marquez has remained capable of winning races and fighting at the front of the grid.
Antuna said the strength in Marquez’s right arm, particularly his biceps, is only around 50% of its normal capacity. The Spaniard also struggles with everyday sporting activities such as playing padel, highlighting the extent of the damage that has been hidden behind his performances on a MotoGP bike.
The surgeon went as far as to suggest that if Marquez were a professional tennis player such as Carlos Alcaraz, the injury could have forced him to end his career.
The comparison underlines the extraordinary physical demands of MotoGP and the level of compensation Marquez has developed to continue riding despite his limitations.
Marquez’s latest major setback came at the Indonesian Grand Prix in October, when he was involved in a collision with Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi. The crash caused an acromioclavicular dislocation and a fracture, undoing much of the progress he had made during years of rehabilitation.
Source: NST
According to Antuna, the crash effectively forced Marquez to start his recovery from the beginning. The shoulder dislocation alone took around four months to heal, while the damage also destabilised an area that is crucial for controlling a MotoGP bike at extreme speeds.
The severity of the injury became more visible when Marquez shared a shirtless photograph on social media, showing significant muscle loss around his right shoulder. The image offered fans a clearer picture of the physical challenges he had been dealing with.
Doctors also discovered that an older bone fragment had become displaced, contributing to ongoing pain and making it harder for Marquez to control his arm. The problem eventually led to another operation on May 10, his seventh surgery on the right arm since 2020.
Before the Indonesian crash, Marquez’s arm was not fully restored but had become well compensated through rehabilitation and adaptation. The accident disrupted that balance and made a complete return to his pre-injury condition unlikely.
Yet Marquez has continued to deliver performances that appear to defy those limitations.
His ability to adapt to a weakened arm, manage the pain and still compete against the world’s best riders has become another defining part of his career. While he may never be physically the same rider he was before his injuries, Marquez has shown that being at “100%” does not necessarily mean having a perfect body.
For one of MotoGP’s most decorated champions, it now means finding a way to perform at his best despite the damage he has endured.
