Marc Marquez told the only MotoGP rider he should truly ‘fear’ in 2026 title defence

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Marc Marquez lacked a genuine threat during his rout to a seventh MotoGP title this season, but has been told that he should ‘fear’ one rider during his title defence next year.

The Spaniard truly was in a league of his own during his debut year with the factory Ducati team. Having not mounted a championship challenge since his previous title feat in 2019, Marquez threw down the gauntlet as he dominated the rest of the field.

However, it’s clear that Ducati’s dominance won’t last forever, and rival MotoGP brands are starting to catch up to them.

Team principal Davide Tardozzi is aware of Ducati’s diminishing gap to the rest of the grid, and his star rider may face some serious competition when it comes to defending his premier class title next season.

READ MORE: Marco Melandri claims Marc Marquez’s injury could actually improve his 2026 MotoGP title chances

Former Honda boss Oscar Haro thinks Marc Marquez should ‘fear’ Pedro Acosta next season

Pedro Acosta has been one of the standout performers during the current term, and despite being in just his second season of MotoGP, the Murcian rider has shown glimpses of becoming a world champion in the near future.

In a recent interview with Nico Abad, via Motosan, the former director of LCR, Oscar Haro, gave his verdict on why the 21-year-old will be the biggest thorn in Marquez’s side next year.

He said, “There are riders you can’t yet count on for the championship. The only one I think worries Marc Marquez… I don’t think so, but the only one who worries him and rides the Honda like Marc does is Pedro Acosta.

“Marc has to fear Aprilia as a factory, and Acosta as a rider.”

Acosta is confident that he can beat Marquez on equal machinery, but the chances of him being able to get the better of the seven-time premier class champion are relatively slim if he isn’t given a more competitive bike by KTM to race atop next season.

He’s currently one of just four riders on the grid who don’t have a MotoGP victory to their name, something he is adamant about changing.

READ MORE: Pedro Acosta has now addressed one of Ducati’s concerns about pairing him with Marc Marquez

Oscar Haro also highlighted how ‘difficult’ Pedro Acosta has made Brad Binder’s life at KTM

One metric that shows how impressive Acosta has been during his sophomore season in MotoGP is the head-to-head battle with KTM teammate Brad Binder.

The South African is currently on the wrong end of a 21-0 thrashing in the qualifying battle. Upon being presented with the stat ahead of the most recent round of racing in Portugal, Acosta insisted that qualifying isn’t his strong suit.

In his interview with Nico Abad, Haro continued with his assessment of Acosta’s talents, and highlighted how Binder has seemingly regressed, whilst Acosta has continued to impress.

“Binder has been overtaken by the arrival of Pedro Acosta,” Haro added. “He’s better than the others, and it’s very difficult to accept that being Binder, just like Maverick and Bastianini.

“I give Acosta top marks, a 10 this year. He’s learned from his mistakes. He’s the only one who can hurt Marc Márquez and compete with him.”