Neil Hodgson column: Fear of failure, not crashing, is what haunts MotoGP riders
Updated 16/01/2026 at 14:04 GMT
React to this story
Neil explains in his exclusive TNT Sports column why he believes that a fear of crashing is not at the forefront of the mind of any rider throughout a MotoGP campaign. Instead, he insists it is a fear of failure that occupies the minds of the sport's top athletes. Hodgson also looks ahead to Grand Prix Catalunya, and picks Marc Marquez's potential challengers.
Highlights: Marc Marquez completes Hungary Grand Prix double
Video credit: TNT Sports
Neil Hodgson is providing expert insight to TNT Sports throughout the MotoGP season.
In his latest column, he shares his thought-processes around the high-speed danger inherent in racing.
**************
Grand Prix Catalunya
Why Marc Marquez won’t be tempted to ‘gamble’ with his career
07/09/2025 at 11:55
As a professional racer, I became used to being quizzed about all the aspects of my career, but the one that always stood out was when people suggested I was crazy to be ready to take a bike around a circuit at the highest speeds.
But to be honest, I always found that slightly insulting, even if people didn’t mean to be. Looking back on it, I think that unless you’re a racer yourself, you can’t quite understand what it is that motivates riders, and what it is that scares them the most.
When I started riding bikes, I was only five, and I started racing them when I was eight. The bike becomes part of you, and crashes just become a way of life. Of course, it’s painful, but it’s part of the job, even if you ideally never want to crash at all. As you get used to it, it’s not what you’re afraid of.
If you look at my career, I was racing for almost three decades. I’ve accumulated a few injuries over the years. I broke my right leg, both the tibia and fibula. I broke my right kneecap, my left wrist, and my left shoulder blade. I broke all the ribs on my left-hand side and a couple of the right. I’ve had a collapsed lung, and I can’t count the amount of sprains.
That list, of course, sounds awful, but that was spread out over 27 years, much of it at a high professional level. If you break it down over almost 30 years, it’s about one every four years. It’s not ideal, of course, but it doesn’t really match what people think.
They are assuming you are constantly injured. The truth is, every time you crash, it might hurt, but you probably won’t get injured, because of the way things usually go wrong on a bike.
- 'If you can't brake in the lean, you're f*****' - Bagnaia hopeful ahead of Grand Prix Catalunya
- Why ‘patient’ Marquez is ‘laughing in his helmet’ after latest victory
Most of the crashes are front-end washouts where you’re in a corner, you’re leaning over, almost touching the ground, and the front of the bike slides away. You just slide along with it, so there’s usually no great big impact to hurt you.
If you look at the sport now, safety has advanced loads. Inside a leather suit you have an airbag system that really protects you well, particularly the shoulders and collarbones. You don’t really see collarbone problems like you used to. Those crashes, when you wash out on the front tyre, are relatively painless.
The crashes that do hurt are what we call high sides. That’s when the rear of the bike slides, grips, and then compresses the suspension. When that happens, the bike can flick you over the top. It’s happened to me, throwing me in the air, and trust me, no matter what protection you’ve got, they really hurt.
I think people get the wrong idea about racing on tracks because they confuse it with TT racing, or road racing in general. There, you don’t have run-offs because they’re on public roads. If you crash there, you’re going to hit something solid and sustain a big, major injury.
Your average MotoGP rider nowadays will crash about 10-15 times during a 22-round season. A TT rider will crash once every 10 years, and the relative severity of potential injuries is starkly different. So, when you think of a motorcycle racer as crazy, well, it’s not as dangerous as some seem to think.
I think people struggle to get into the mindset of a competitive racer. For us, the fear of failure is greater than the fear of pain. At a professional level, when you ride for a manufacturer, and you’re getting paid well, the fear of missing out on success outweighs your other concerns.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2025/09/04/image-03a7098c-d272-45f3-8319-fc68e04d88ec-85-2560-1440.jpeg)
'It's a nice relief' - Miller talks new Pramac MotoGP contract for 2026
Video credit: TNT Sports
I never sat at the start of the race worrying about whether I would get hurt. I definitely worried, though, about whether I’d get a decent result, or a good start. A lot of the time, we’d be on single-year contracts, and you’re only as good as your last race, and you have to constantly perform. The pressure to perform week in, week out, is what drives you and occupies you.
The reason I wanted to discuss crashes is because, here in Barcelona, it’s a wonderful track. But because it’s so popular, it’s one of the lowest grip circuits of the season. The surface is old and worn, and the climate means people can use it year-round. As a result, the tarmac is polished, it’s a slippery track, so it’s easier to crash than at other circuits.
Aprilias set to challenge Marquez in Catalunya - and watch out for Turn 5
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2025/08/23/image-c1acc99d-6573-423a-9c0d-f03cae8eb3af-85-2560-1440.png)
Marquez eases to another Sprint win in Balaton Park's debut
Video credit: TNT Sports
The most difficult corner is Turn 5. It’s a first-gear downhill, it’s off-camber, and it’s a corner where you break really heavily into it. Over the years, it’s a place where we’ve seen the most crashes.
I think this weekend the strongest challengers to Marc Marquez will come from one of the Aprilias. This is a track that the Aprilias have always gone really well on, and Marco Bezzecchi is in dangerous form at the moment.
There’s Jorge Martin, too, who obviously has missed most of the season through injury, but he took fourth in Hungary, and this is a track he is obviously much more used to. He’s got a good track record here, and I think this is Martin’s first real opportunity of the season to really fight at the front of the race.
I don’t think he will come out on top against Marc, to be honest, but he’s got a chance of being on the podium, and he is one to keep an eye on this weekend.
Stream every race of the 2025 MotoGP season live on TNT Sports and discovery+
Related Topics
Advertisement
Advertisement