Marco Bezzecchi
Alex Marquez has had to deal with significant pressure in MotoGP. His brother Marc Marquez has always cast a shadow on his career.
Having a six-time MotoGP champion as a brother came with huge expectations for Alex Marquez. Initially, he struggled to cope with it as he was demoted from Honda to LCR after his rookie season, with many questioning his status in the sport.
Marc Marquez has always popped up in conversations about the 29-year-old, with Alex Marquez seeing his surname as a ‘burden’ due to his brother’s success. Alex Marquez even had ‘enough’ of talking about Marc after his injury in 2020.
The Spaniard has been looking to make a name for himself in MotoGP, and he is finally doing that with Gresini. Riding the Desmosedici GP24, which won 16 out of 20 races in 2024, Alex Marquez sits second in the standings with six races to go in 2025.
He grabbed his first two wins in the premier class at Jerez and Montmelo this season and has displayed incredible consistency. He has battled with the top riders of the sport in 2025, but he has named a surprise competitor as his ‘toughest rival.’
Alex Marquez names Alex Rins as his ‘toughest rival’ in MotoGP besides Marc Marquez
Naturally, many would assume that his brother would be his closest competitor. Alex Marquez is ‘essential’ to Marc’s training and how he has recovered from major injury setbacks over the years.
In 2025, the Ant of Cerveza is the dominant force in MotoGP, winning 25 races thus far and has match point for the title at Motegi. Alex Marquez admitted defeat to Marc some time ago, but he sees second as a ‘magical’ result.
Currently sitting 93 points ahead of Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia, he has established himself as a serious challenger at the front. But despite this, one has to move further down the standings to find his ‘toughest rival’ on the track.
Speaking via Chiringuito Inside, Alex Marquez was asked who he found tougher to battle besides his brother. The Gresini rider gave Yamaha star Alex Rins as his answer, citing the pair’s relationship growing up.
“Tougher? Alex Rins,” he said. Asked for an example of their rivalry in a race, he replied: “Well, there are many, because he’s the one I grew up with. So it’s been like fighting him a lot, right?”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Alex Marquez from net worth to career stats
Alex Rins’ MotoGP career is at risk come 2027
Rins’ MotoGP career has almost been the exact opposite of Marquez’s. Joining Suzuki in 2017, he established himself as a frontrunner the following year, finishing third in the standings in 2020.
But after Suzuki left the sport at the end of 2022, he has struggled at the back with Honda and Yamaha. Now in his second season with the latter, Rins has found strong results hard to come by since breaking his leg in 2023.
With 45 points to his name in 2025, the Spaniard is under pressure to stay in MotoGP. Yamaha will keep Rins in 2026, but rumours have been rife about his long-term future with the manufacturer.
Jack Miller was linked with replacing Rins earlier in the year, but he will now keep his seat at Pramac. However, it is clear that the latter’s future is not certain, with Rins not standing much chance of staying at Yamaha come 2027.
Receive racing news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
