Marc Márquez
Marc Márquez Alentà is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle road racer who races for the Ducati Lenovo Team. He previously raced for Honda's factory team from to, and for the Ducati satellite team Gresini in. Widely considered one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time, he has won nine Grand Prix World Championships, including seven in the MotoGP class.
As a teenager, Márquez won the 125cc World Championship in, and the Moto2 World Championship in. He moved into the MotoGP class in to ride for Repsol Honda. He won the title on his debut, becoming the first rider since Kenny Roberts in to win the premier class title in his rookie season, and the youngest to win it overall, at 20 years and 266 days. He received the Laureus World Sports Award for Breakthrough of the Year. In Márquez defended his title dominantly, winning the first ten races of the season back-to-back. He was ruled out of championship contention early in due to several crashes, with the season overshadowed by his tumultuous feud with Valentino Rossi. In 2016, at the age of 23, Márquez equalled the all-time Grand Prix record for pole positions. He secured a further four consecutive championships in,,, and a particularly dominant. He became the youngest rider to win his seventh and eighth Grand Prix championships.
At the delayed season-opener in Jerez, Márquez crashed and broke his right arm. A premature attempt to return to competition further damaged the arm, and he sat out most of the season due to three surgeries. The injury continued to plague Márquez in, and despite winning races in Germany, Austin, and Misano, he finished the season seventh. Márquez underwent a more successful fourth surgery on his arm at the Mayo Clinic in. Struggling with an increasingly adrift RC213V, Márquez severed his contract with Honda in and joined the satellite Gresini Ducati team for. Márquez won his first race for 1,043 days in Aragon. He finished the championship in third place and negotiated a two-year factory Ducati contract. In, Márquez recovered full form, and won the championship with 5 races to spare. His six-year drought between titles was the longest in history, and at 32 he became the oldest world champion in the four-stroke era. His younger brother Álex Márquez was runner-up, making them the first siblings to place first and second in the premier class. Márquez's 2025 season was rated by his peers as one of the greatest sporting comebacks of all time.
Early life
Márquez was born to parents Roser Alentà and Julià Márquez on February 17, 1993, in Cervera, Catalonia. Márquez received his first dirt bike, a Yamaha PW50, at age four, and quickly took to competitive motocross racing. He finished runner-up in the Catalan junior motocross championship in 2000, and won it in 2001. That year he also began road racing, which soon became his full-time discipline. In 2003 Márquez raced in the Open RACC 50cc series, and won the title at his first attempt.In 2004 Márquez graduated to a 125cc bike. He raced in the Catalan 125cc championship, with Pol Espargaró as his teammate. Márquez finished runner-up to Espargaró in 2004, and won the championship in 2005 and 2006. In 2006, Márquez also made his debut in the 125cc Spanish Road Racing Championship, where he finished eighth. He was disadvantaged due to his size: at twelve years old, he was tall and weighed just 29 kilos. His team fitted his bike and leathers with 21 kilos' extra weight to compensate. He finished the 2007 season ninth after several crashes, but showed enough potential to move into the world championship for the 2008 season.
Career
125cc World Championship
2008
Márquez made his championship debut on 13 April as a KTM rider at the 125cc Portuguese Grand Prix, aged 15 years and 56 days. In just his sixth race in the category, at the British Grand Prix, Márquez came third. He became the youngest Spanish rider to take a podium in Grand Prix motorcycle racing. He was the only rider of a non-Piaggio bike to achieve a podium all season, and finished ranked thirteenth in the standings.2009
In, Márquez scored another podium with a 3rd place at Jerez. He achieved his first pole position at the French Grand Prix at 16 years and 88 days, becoming the youngest Spanish rider to take pole in a motorcycling world championship. He took a second pole position in Malaysia, but retired from both races. Márquez finished ranked eighth in the standings, 21 places above the other KTM bike.2010
Márquez received a much faster Derbi bike in, which he rode for Red Bull Ajo. He promptly took two podiums in the first three races, and on 6 June, Márquez won his first Grand Prix race at Mugello. He immediately followed this with victories at Silverstone, Assen and Barcelona, becoming the youngest rider ever to win four successive races. With yet another win at the Sachsenring, Márquez became the first rider since Valentino Rossi in to win five successive races in 125cc racing.Márquez faltered across the next four rounds, winning in Misano but struggling in Brno and Indianapolis. After retiring from Aragon due to an accident with Randy Krummenacher at the first corner, he dropped to third in the standings behind Nicolás Terol and Pol Espargaró. Márquez then claimed another four successive wins, in Motegi, Malaysia, Australia and Estoril, to gain a 17-point lead over Terol with one round to go. The race in Estoril was red-flagged due to rain when Márquez was running in second behind Terol. Before the race was restarted, Márquez fell on the sighting lap and had to return to the pits for repairs. He was forced to start at the back of the field, having not made it out of pit lane quickly enough. Despite this, Márquez won the race. He then finished fourth in Valencia to claim his first world title. At 17 years and 263 days old, he was the second-youngest world champion ever, behind Loris Capirossi.
Moto2 World Championship
2011
Márquez moved into the Moto2 class for to begin a two-year stint as the sole rider of the new team Monlau Competición, run by his manager Emilio Alzamora. After two retirements and a 21st place finish, Márquez took his first Moto2 victory in Le Mans. At his home race in Catalonia, Márquez finished second behind championship leader Stefan Bradl. He took his first pole position in Silverstone, but once again crashed and retired. With Bradl having taken four victory in the first six races, Márquez trailed him by 82 points.Márquez made a mid-season surge up the championship standings, winning six of the next seven races to move within six points of Bradl. After finishing second to Bradl's fourth at Motegi, Márquez took the championship lead by one point. In Australia, Márquez crashed into the back of Ratthapark Wilairot after the free practice had been concluded, and was given a one-minute penalty on his qualifying time for riding in an "irresponsible manner". The penalty ensured Márquez would start the race from last on the grid, but he carved his way through the field to finish in third place. The championship still seemed likely to be his.
Despite rumors of a move to MotoGP, Márquez confirmed before the Malaysian Grand Prix that he would remain in Moto2 for the 2012 season. In the opening minutes of the first free practice session in Malaysia, Márquez crashed on a damp patch of asphalt alongside several other riders. He suffered nerve inflammation which caused him to develop diplopia. After sitting out two further practice sessions, Márquez completed two laps in the qualifying session, but his times only placed him 36th on the grid. He did not start the race, as he failed a medical examination prior to the warm-up on race morning. Márquez attended the final race of the season in Valencia, in the hope of being fit to compete, but withdrew due to continued vision problems, handing Bradl the title.
2012
Márquez returned with a vengeance in. He claimed six pole positions across the first eight rounds, winning in Qatar, Estoril, Assen and Germany, and claiming further podiums in Jerez, Catalonia, and Silverstone. He came fifth in Mugello, before taking three consecutive wins in Indianapolis, Brno and Misano. Despite a race win for runner-up Pol Espargaró, Márquez clinched the world championship with a second place finish in Australia.Márquez had developed a reputation as an aggressive rider during his stint in Moto2 which peaked due to a number of incidents in 2012. After the season-opener in Qatar, he received a warning over an incident where he overtook Thomas Lüthi aggressively on the final lap, forcing him wide. Lüthi slapped Márquez on the arm in retaliation, which caused him to also receive a warning. Collisions with Pol Espargaró at Catalonia and Mika Kallio at Motegi brought Márquez further controversy. Following the news of his imminent move to MotoGP, a new penalty points system was announced to discourage irresponsible riding.
During a practice session for his final Moto2 race in Valencia, Márquez knocked Simone Corsi off his bike while attempting an overtake and was penalised for dangerous riding. Demoted to 33rd position on the starting grid, Márquez carved through every other rider on track to win the race. This performance, which involved overtaking 20 bikes on the first lap alone, is widely recognised as one of the best racing comebacks of all time, and one of the signature performances of Márquez's career. He finished the season with nine race wins, and only finished off the podium in three races, two of those being DNFs. Márquez's results also handed Suter the Moto2 constructors' title.