When Marc Marquez crossed the line at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, there was no longer any doubt, not about the title that felt inevitable for weeks, but that he had achieved something deeper by completing one of MotoGP's greatest comebacks.

Six years had passed since he last stood proudly on the summit of motorcycle racing - years filled with doubts, crashes, broken bones and whispers of retirement when the most dominant rider on the grid often looked like a ghost of himself.

But aboard the red Ducati that had once been his nemesis, he was not just winning races but conquering the grid as he got his hands on the elusive seventh premier class crown to go level with long-time rival and MotoGP great Valentino Rossi.

"I'm at peace with myself ... It was the most difficult challenge o

See Full Page