-
Home
- TV Shows
- TV Schedule
- NASCAR
-
Latest Headlines: NASCAR
-
-
Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Games
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
MotoGP
MOTOGP: Next Big Thing
Teenage talent Marc Marquez has been billed as MotoGP's next surefire superstar. Can the new Repsol Honda pilot live up to the hype?
Repsol Honda's Marc Marquez and crew (Photo: HRC)
For the past few years, Marc Marquez has been considered “next” in the line of standout MotoGP talent.
MotoGP is a Euro-centric sport and there’s always a line of Europeans who want the factory gig. But Marquez had slugged his way through the gladiator academy and was awarded the coveted factory Honda ride as a result. Last week, the 19-year old Spaniard tested the bike in Valencia and impressed. In about 90 minutes, he’d come within a second of Dani Pedrosa and was even closer to some other young pilots that actually have experience riding MotoGP bikes.
It’s easy to see the buzz surrounding Marquez, even before the test. In 2010, he claimed the 125 World Championship in dramatic fashion. He moved up to Moto2 the following year and put up an admirable fight to Stefan Bradl in 2011 before winning it this year.
So his credentials are like that of Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa. He’s a bit of a wild man on the track, but they all are at this stage. Risk management is a concept one learns rather quickly on the powerful bikes. He’ll likely make some mistakes and that will hurt him in the championship but the big question is whether he can push "the aliens” for race wins in short order.
The abandoning of the Rookie Rule means he can go straight to a factory team next year and take Stoner’s seat. That makes it easier -- as does not having to actually race against Stoner. Valentino Rossi’s struggles mean there are two guys with the bull's-eye on their backs -- Lorenzo and Pedrosa.
All of the race winners in recent years, with the exception of Ben Spies, came up racing 250 GP bikes. Those machines translated well to the high-corner speed style of MotoGP bikes with advanced electronics. Marquez, however, came up after Moto 2 had replaced that class.
Some people wonder how effective a training ground Moto 2 is for MotoGP, largely because it is so new and the nature of the bikes are different. So here’s a great test -- a can’t-miss kid on a factory bike. There are fewer variables, anyway.
Another factor… Marquez can certainly add to the excitement factor in MotoGP. People want to see the 'Next Big Thing' while he’s on the rise. Lorenzo and Pedrosa certainly aren’t old by any means but they have been around a while. They are established stars. The late Marco Simoncelli was fantastic in that role before he sadly left us. It also looked like Ben Spies would rise to the top but his 2012 season left him regrouping his career. There are other riders like Bradl, Cal Crutchlow, and Alvaro Bautista who are talented but not contending for wins yet. Marquez could jumpstart this aspect of MotoGP.
Honda obviously wanted to keep Stoner and offered him 15 million reasons to stay. The big hypothetical question would have been who partnered him if he had? Before Dani went on a tear, some people thought Marquez was gonna bump his fellow countryman/Repsol favorite out of a job.
Not content with one young lion, HRC has signed up Bradl to a deal for factory support next year and 2014, too.
Marquez will test in Sepang next week, but Pedrosa won’t be there.
This may apply to you… Do you want to feel old? Marquez was born in 1993 -- the same year Kevin Schwantz won his World Championship. He was three years old when Valentino Rossi won his first World Championship race.
MotoGP is a Euro-centric sport and there’s always a line of Europeans who want the factory gig. But Marquez had slugged his way through the gladiator academy and was awarded the coveted factory Honda ride as a result. Last week, the 19-year old Spaniard tested the bike in Valencia and impressed. In about 90 minutes, he’d come within a second of Dani Pedrosa and was even closer to some other young pilots that actually have experience riding MotoGP bikes.
It’s easy to see the buzz surrounding Marquez, even before the test. In 2010, he claimed the 125 World Championship in dramatic fashion. He moved up to Moto2 the following year and put up an admirable fight to Stefan Bradl in 2011 before winning it this year.
So his credentials are like that of Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa. He’s a bit of a wild man on the track, but they all are at this stage. Risk management is a concept one learns rather quickly on the powerful bikes. He’ll likely make some mistakes and that will hurt him in the championship but the big question is whether he can push "the aliens” for race wins in short order.
The abandoning of the Rookie Rule means he can go straight to a factory team next year and take Stoner’s seat. That makes it easier -- as does not having to actually race against Stoner. Valentino Rossi’s struggles mean there are two guys with the bull's-eye on their backs -- Lorenzo and Pedrosa.
All of the race winners in recent years, with the exception of Ben Spies, came up racing 250 GP bikes. Those machines translated well to the high-corner speed style of MotoGP bikes with advanced electronics. Marquez, however, came up after Moto 2 had replaced that class.
Some people wonder how effective a training ground Moto 2 is for MotoGP, largely because it is so new and the nature of the bikes are different. So here’s a great test -- a can’t-miss kid on a factory bike. There are fewer variables, anyway.
Another factor… Marquez can certainly add to the excitement factor in MotoGP. People want to see the 'Next Big Thing' while he’s on the rise. Lorenzo and Pedrosa certainly aren’t old by any means but they have been around a while. They are established stars. The late Marco Simoncelli was fantastic in that role before he sadly left us. It also looked like Ben Spies would rise to the top but his 2012 season left him regrouping his career. There are other riders like Bradl, Cal Crutchlow, and Alvaro Bautista who are talented but not contending for wins yet. Marquez could jumpstart this aspect of MotoGP.
Honda obviously wanted to keep Stoner and offered him 15 million reasons to stay. The big hypothetical question would have been who partnered him if he had? Before Dani went on a tear, some people thought Marquez was gonna bump his fellow countryman/Repsol favorite out of a job.
Not content with one young lion, HRC has signed up Bradl to a deal for factory support next year and 2014, too.
Marquez will test in Sepang next week, but Pedrosa won’t be there.
This may apply to you… Do you want to feel old? Marquez was born in 1993 -- the same year Kevin Schwantz won his World Championship. He was three years old when Valentino Rossi won his first World Championship race.
Grand Prix of The Americas
LATEST HEADLINES: MOTO-RACING
-
VIDEO: AMA MX - Hangtown Classic Highlights
Ryan Villopoto kicked off the '13 Lucias Oil Motocross season in… -
AMA DSB: Westby Back In Action
Dane Westby was back on a bike after his Daytona injury to test at… -
AMA DSB: Heirs To The Throne
AMA Pro's second offseason is finally coming to an end and with it… -
MOTOGP: Crutchlow Takes Career-Best Result
Cal Crutchlow worked his forward to claim a runner-up result in the… -
PHOTOS: MotoGP - French Grand Prix
Dani Pedrosa leads the MotoGP World Championship after securing his… -
MOTOGP: Dovi Leads, Ducati Scores Double Top Five
Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden took full advantage of the wet… -
MOTOGP: Le Mans Race Day Ticker (UPDATED)
Notes and quotes following Sunday's dramatic French Grand Prix. - More News
