That would equal the Spaniard’s longest rostrum drought in the premier class, which follow𓆏ed his return from arm injuries at the start of the 2021 season.

“It's [getting] easier and easier to admit [that we don’t have podium pace],” Marquez insisted, after qualifying in tenth place at L🍰e Mans.

“In the beginning it💞's harder and you don't want to admit🎀 it. But in the end, you need to admit it.

“Because if every time you try to be a bit faster, try to be a b🥃it closer to the top guy🐻s, you crash or do some mistakes, you struggle even more because you are over-riding.

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“Today we can finish 5th, 6th, 7th in a good race. If theﷺ race is not so good, if you don't start well, we can finish 9th or 10th and it will be not a surprise for us.

“It's true that it's not th𒁏e position I like to be, but now it's the time to workཧ.

“It seems like since we arrived in Europe, with short, small and narrow tr🐷acks, we are st𒈔ruggling a bit more.

“You need to turn in a short time, and use the acceleration a lot,” added the eight time world champion. “For example we were fast in Qatar, in Mandalika, in Malaysia, but yo☂u can use a lot of the track to turn.

“But here, we need to brake hard andܫ turn in a short𓄧 time, and that's where we are struggling a bit more. I'm trying to understand how to do that.”

Fourth quickest after a tow behind Fabio Quartar👍aro in Saturday morning’s FP3, Marquez - like his fellow Honda riders - also found the RCV’s performance was depleted by tꦜhe rising temperatures.

“This morning I had the speed,” Marquez ♊said. “OK, I followed Fabio, but before I followed Fabio, riding alone I did that 1'31.9. The la♈p time was coming in an easier way, and I knew that the speed was there.

“But th🅷is afternoon, since I went out in FP4, the feeling was not good. I tried in the second run to ride alone, tried to find how to ride in those conditions, but even like tꦅhis the feeling was not good and I crashed trying to understand where I can push more.

“Then in qualifying, I went out and again, the feeling was no good and I just did my maximum. With the second﷽ tyre I put the soft front. It was a better feeling, but it was too soft.

“Anyway, we will see tomorrow. If it's a bit cloudy, maybe we can have a better pace, but not the pace to win or fight for the podium. It's a pace to fight for 5th, 6th, 7th ♐position in the best case.”

Anything better, Marquez🧜 believes, will depend on the arri💦val of rain.

“If I'm lucky, it will rain a bit🀅 and everything will be more open - for a [good] result or a crash, you never know!” he said.

Remy Gardner: Snow, hail… or a tornado!

Marc Marquez wasn🐓’t the only rider believing bad weather could boost their chances 🗹in the race.

“Snow, hail… or if a tornado wants to rip ♕up the track that'll be good as well!” Remy Gardner joked after qualifying👍 22nd, as KTM’s tough weekend continued with all four orange machines outside the top 16.

“Hopefully we can capitalise on any strange weather as much as p🌠ossible. I don't know if we'd be up there [in the wet], but hopefully we could at least be closer to the top 15.

“It also wouldn't be a bad thing if it starts raining after two laps and we have a flag-to-flag because I've never done one yet! It’d be interesting to see how good I am at c🏅hanging the bikes and stuff.”

Pol Espargaro: At least Marc and I suffering the same problems

Marquez’s Repsol Honda team-m🦂ate Pol Espargaro began the French weekend fastest in FP1, but will start the race just behind him in eleventh place.

“It's like we arrive at a circuit and straight away on Friday, when everyone is still understanding the track and bike and before everyone starts to put their motorbikes on its limi🌄t, I'm one of the quickest,” Espargar🅰o said.

“Then everyone starts to work, the bikes start to be faster, and you reach your limit. And it's difficult to be faster. We do no🏅t improve and then in the afternoon, when it’s a little bit hotter, we decrease our speed. We lose.

“The Ducatis, it doesn't matter if it's sunny, cold, they are fast all the time and also other manufacturers. But we struggle a🎉 little bit more with that [temperat🃏ure rise] and it's difficult.

“The good point is I've been complaining about it since the beginning of the year andꦕ now Marc is feeling it t💞oo,” Espargaro added.

“Marc didn't complain so much about the rear grip in Jerez. When the track temperature grew he was not too bad. But today he feꦐlt it a lot. So it's nice at least to be on the same feeling and suffering with the same problems.

“But we didn't e✤xpect to be suffering so much. OK, I didn't make my last lap because I found Johann in the middle [of the track]. But anyway, my lap would be not much faster than this morning, so it would be around Marc’s time.”

Zarco was su𒉰bsequently given a thr🍰ee-place grid penalty for 'riding slowly and disturbing' Espargaro, but it do♔esn't change the starting positions for either Repsol Hondꦛa rider.