Marc Márquez – The Story of an 8-time World Champion
Marc Márquez was born in Cervera, a town located in the centre of Catalunya, 100km from Barcelona and 60km from Lleida. Marc is still living in his home town to this day. As he was about to turn 4 years old, Márquez asked his parents for a motorbike, thus beginning a lifelong passion for motorcycling and setting him on his pathway to the MotoGP.
After starting in the world of bike racing with enduro and achieving the Catalonia Championship title in 2001, in 2002 he crossed over to tarmac. In his first road racing experience, he finished third in the Catalonia Championship. In 2004 Márquez began using his renown #93 the year of his birth, which he still uses today (even preferred over the #1). From 2004-2006 he raced in the 125cc Catalunya Championship, finishing runner-up in 2004 and winning in 05 & 06. In 2007 Marc would compete in the Spanish Road Racing Championship and at the Jerez Circuit, Marc achieved the first victory of his record book on the back of a KTM 125 RRF. That year he finished ninth in the CEV (Spanish Motorcycling Championship), where he competed with other promising stars of the national scene.
Following his amateur success, Márquez made his championship debut on 13 April 2008 at the 2008 Portuguese Grand Prix aboard a Repsol KTM 125 at only 15 years old. Márquez would appear 13 times in 2008, making it to the podium just the once, finishing in 13th overall with 63 points. Fast forward to 2010 and Márquez was riding for Red Bull Ajo Motorsport on an Aprilia RS125R. After 17 races, 10 of which were won by Márquez with another two featuring a podium finish the young Spaniard would claim his very first world championship.
Márquez with his 2010 championship-winning Aprilia
Following his 125 success, Márquez moved up into the Moto2 for 2011, after a poor start retiring from the first two races of the season followed by a 21st things weren’t looking great for his debut Moto2 year. Despite his less than desirable start to the season he went on to appear on the podium every race (excluding Great Britain) up until a DNS in Malaysia due to injury and a Withdrawal in the final round of Valencia as he was unable to participate in the free practice or qualifying sessions due to the injuries sustained in Malaysia. Heading into Malaysia, Márquez was only 3-points off championship leader Stefan Bradl. However, due to not acquiring any points in the final two-rounds Márquez would finish 2nd overall with Bradl claiming the championship.
After his successful but somewhat personally disappointing start to Moto2 Márquez was determined to claim championship gold in 2012. Across all 17 races, Márquez featured on the podium 14 times, with 9 victories, retiring in two races and one 5th place finish. His dominant performance earnt him his second world championship and a promotion to the premier MotoGP class.
Marc Márquez aboard the steed that would secure his 2012 Moto2 championship
Now racing for Team Repsol Honda in the MotoGP Márquez came in hot with a podium finish in the opening round of Qatar, with defending champion and fellow Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo taking the win. Once again Márquez’s consistency throughout the championship would prove lethal, acquiring a podium finish in 16 of the 18 races, 6 wins, retiring once in Italy and disqualified in Australia for not pitting within the first 10 laps of the race to swap tyres/bikes. Márquez would finish just 4-points ahead of Lorenzo to claim the MotoGP championship in his rookie year and became the youngest rider to win the MotoGP championship title.
Left: Márquez celebrates winning the 2013 MotoGP in his rookie year with his custom Shoei helmet
Right: A poster celebrating his 2013 season complete with race statistics
Fast forward to 2019, of his 7 years in the MotoGP Márquez has won 6, with a 3rd in 2015. Marc Márquez holds a compelling list of records (61 to be exact) with the most impressive certainly being the youngest MotoGP championship winner, most wins in a single season in the Moto2 class at 9 and the most race wins in a single season in the premier class at 13. 2019 sees Marc Márquez claim his 6th MotoGP championship and 8th world championship. It has become quite apparent that Márquez cannot be stopped, securing the 2019 championship with still 4 rounds remaining. During the 2019 championship (up until Thailand) he has won or placed second in every round excluding retiring in America.
Márquez celebrates his 8th World Championship in Thailand 2019
We look forward to seeing Márquez finish off the 2019 MotoGP in style and cannot wait to see him claim even more titles in the future.
