I know this clip from the virtual race is often heralded as a moment of Vale brazenly ignoring Marc, but the wider context changes things.
In the main event livestream (x), Vale mentions that he'd been practising in the days leading up to the race, and I think there's a good chance he was practising with Marc. Firstly, because Marc breaks into a coy little smile in response (x).
But let's take it step-by-step to see how they give it away...
It all starts with the Unseen series (x), where they stitched together clips of the riders idling and chit-chatting before each event began. The edit trims things down heavily, but the clips are presented in chronological order.
Throughout this segment, everyone's holding their controllers but not actually using them while they chat away, Marc included. There's barely any footage of Vale beyond him greeting everyone when he first joins.
The group seems to be idling for quite a while before there's an abrupt cut to one of the officiators arriving with the news that they'll be doing a 5 min qualifying session followed by a 10 lap race --- the format we then see play out in the main livestream.
The edit then cuts to a few clips of them joking about the superiority of Ducati over Yamaha engines. Marc is absent from his seat here, though he offers a jajaja in the background.
After another cut, where more time and conversation has clearly passed, the topic of Maverick Viñales' absence comes up. Someone saying "Maverick is missing" is overlaid on a shot of Marc biting his lip in concentration, clearly focused on the game, clearly deep into a round. Whereas no one else appears to be playing at this point (though it's hard to say for certain since we're only seeing the brief, clip-worthy moments from that entire period).
Marc then chimes in with a playful accusation, "He's [Viñales] training! Last-minute setup!" --- and to me, he's essentially telling on himself here, because that's exactly what he's doing with Vale. It cuts to Tito and Alex continuing to discuss Viñales' absence before switching to Vale, who's mirroring Marc's focus and preoccupation with the screen, clearly engaged in the game himself. Reminder that nothing has begun yet, there's no reason to be actively playing a round right now.
Yet, curiously, Marc and Vale are the only ones doing so. At the same time, their respective commentaries aligning just as curiously with each other's reactions. Vale's "Argh! A bit wide," looks to be a response to Marc crashing in-game because the next shot shows him retrieving his controller from the side, having seemingly put it down after losing.
This is where Vale immediately responds with this coy look toward the camera, pursing his lips in a really pronounced way. It feels like he's breaking the fourth wall at Marc's audacity (trying to bury the fact that they'd been playing together by loudly asking, 'Are you guys playing or what?') before turning straight back to his screen.
I also think a part of it is that Vale instinctively wanted to answer Marc here because he's so used to responding to him while playing this game together for days. It's similar to the two other clips I included at the end of the compilation, sourced from press conferences where Vale's instincts seem to betray him.
But throughout the main livestream, as always, rosquez displays an exceptional awareness of one another -- a story told through the countless little moments of mirroring that I've compiled (x). They're shamelessly making eyes at each other the whole time!
Since we've established that they were practising together in the days leading up to the event --- and even in the waiting room before the livestream started --- I think Marc is a little irked by Vale consulting Francesca off-screen. Which Vale seems to find it amusing and plays into (x).
As I mentioned in that linked post, I think he deliberately makes it look like he's texting Pecco so that it pre-emptively plants the idea in onlookers' minds that, "Oh, it must be Pecco..." whenever they notice him on his phone. Francesca's visible presence also helps as a distraction (red herring of sorts) because having your gf so prominently in frame naturally redirects and dispels any suspicion someone might otherwise have of strange moments with your secret gay lover.
This may seem very micro-managerial --- like who is even noticing these tiny interactions other than truthers like us poring over these clips frame by frame, right? But remember, people hiding something (or lying outright) have to be hypersensitive and overcompensate. They plan right down to the smallest details and account for every little thing that could risk giving them away.
Rosquez takes a lot of risks right under our noses. Generally, I think people in long-term secret relationships become predisposed to taking those kinds of risks because, after living so much of your life steeped in secrecy, there's almost a degree of "fuck it, let's go for it." And it manifests in discreetly playing games together on a publicised, recorded video call with all their colleagues and the world watching.
