Marc Marquez’ MotoGP records are tumbling this year but it’s not for good reasons. For instance, 2017 is the first year in which he hasn’t been victorious at one of the opening two races of the year and at Austin this weekend, there is more than a 50 per cent chance he could lose at Austin for the first time.

The Repsol Honda man has never been beaten at the Circuit of the Americas. Even throwing it down the road in qualifying and running for a second bike before setting pole has been able to dent a perfect scoresheet at the Texas track - but with Maverick Vinales in such astounding form, someone with a big pen could come knocking.

Marquez is having a pretty thin time so far this year with one finish and 13 points to his name. He trails Vinales by 37 points and no-one in MotoGP’s four-stroke history has come from that far back to win a championship.

“After the Argentina race, I’m happy to go to a track I love as much as Austin, although of course I would have preferred to arrive there in a better position. Anyway, another race weekend is about to start and we’ll give 100% to try to get our first podium this season,” said Marquez.

“I have great memories of Austin, and for me it’s one of the best venues on the race calendar. I like the layout of the track, as it has many different types of sections and corners and lots of elevation changes. I also love the “American” style, with all the fans enjoying the sport and the fun at the track, so let’s get back in action and see how it goes there.”