Ordinarily, a sixth-placed finish for Marc Marquez at the American MotoGP around the Circuit of the Americas would be considered something of an underwhelming result.

However, events on Sunday, as Marquez failed to win a race around that track when finishing for the first time in his career, meant that was still a more than respectable result for the Spaniard.

Lining up ninth on the grid for the MotoGP race in Texas, a botched start due to an apparent electrical issue with his bike, saw Marquez unable to get out of first gear as every other bike on the grid roared past him, leaving the Repsol Honda last heading into the first corner.

However, he responded to that in typically spectacular Marquez style, cutting his way through the field to work all the way up to a sixth place finish, which means he can now head back to the European leg of the calendar, with his name not out of the mix for the title just yet.

Indeed, had it not been for the drama off the line, the pace and nature of the way he cut through so many bikes, means there is a strong case to be made for the suggestion that Marquez would have claimed an eighth win in nine races at the Circuit of the Americas, had he made a clean start.

That is made all the more impressive by the fact that this was Marquez's first race back, since that huge crash in warm-up in Indonesia three weeks ago, that once again left him struggling with double vision.

What it also does, however, is serve as a reminder of the problems that Honda have got, that are so often masked by the miracles of Marquez.

For all the issues that the Spaniard endured, both in the lead-up to the weekend, and with his start, he was still the highest-finishing Honda in the States on Sunday, by quite some distance.

AUSTIN, TEXAS - APRIL 09: Marc Marquez of Spain and Repsol Honda Team lifts the rear wheel during the Moto2 qualifying practice during the MotoGP Of The Americas - Qualifying on April 09, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Mirco Lazzari gp/Getty Images)

While Marquez claimed sixth in America over the weekend, his Respol Honda teammate Pol Espargaro could only manage 13th, with LCR Honda's Takaaki Nakagami one place further back in 14th, with both taking the flag well over ten seconds after Marquez.

Meanwhile, the other LCR Honda, ridden by Marquez's brother Alex, would crash out just five laps into the race, a second DNF in just four races this season for the younger of the siblings, who remains without a podium since dropping into that team following his sole season with Repsol in 2020.

Admittedly, the aforementioned Espargaro was suffering with illness in the States over the weekend, but it is now just two podiums in 22 race weekends for the 30-year-old since he stepped across to Repsol at the start of last season, when many expected him to be the perfect foil for Marquez in that team.

Nakagami meanwhile, is still searching for his first MotoGP podium in what is now his fifth season in the Premier class of motorcycle racing, all of which have been with that LCR Honda team.

Consequentially, it is Marquez the elder that Honda continue to have to look to for to keep them in contention for prizes, even in such trying circumstances for the Spaniard from an individual perspective.

But given those challenges that Marquez is having to overcome, that is a rather risky situation for Honda to be in.

Once again on Sunday, Marquez showed that he is willing to push things to the absolute limit to work his way through the field, holding very little back with some of his overtakes.

However, that is something that has hit him hard with the injuries he has suffered previously, and if he continues in this matter, you fear it is only a matter of time before something like that happens again.

In that eventuality, you feel that after all the blows it has already suffered, Marquez's body may not be far away from telling him that enough, and forcing him to walk away from the sport while he can.

Marquez will of course, have many more years where he is not racing than is, and he must make sure he is in a condition to make as much of that as he can as well.

Indeed, with eight world titles and 85 race wins across the three classes already under his belt, it is not as if he has anything left to prove in terms of his ability, while the returns he has earned from both his Honda contracts, and sponsorship deals, mean he is unlikely to be short financially either.

LOMBOK, INDONESIA - MARCH 20: MotoGP rider Marc Marquez #93 of Spain and Repsol Honda Team in action during the MotoGP Grand Prix of Indonesia warm up session at Mandalika International Street Circuit on March 20, 2022 in Lombok, Indonesia. (Photo by Robertus Pudyanto/Getty Images)

Of course, Marquez is contracted to Honda until 2024, but as Jorge Lorenzo showed with that exact same team back in 2019, there are ways out of those deals before they come to an end, should Marquez find himself in a position where he feels that is the right thing for him to do.

Should that happen, then as has already been touched upon, it is hard to see any of Honda's current crop of riders being able to step and consistently fill the Marquez-shaped void that would be left in the factory's cabinet.

There is obviously the potential for Honda to head out and look to bring in replacements from other manufacturers, but given many of those have had a front row seat next to Marc Marquez, and only Marc Marquez, being able to make that bike work in recent years, you wonder if they will be willing to risk their own reputations, and maybe careers, by stepping onto that bike themselves.

It seems therefore, that for all the excitement generated by Marquez's latest moment of magic in the USA, deep down, this was yet another reminder of the even tougher times that could be on the horizon for Honda, in the not too distant future.