Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez heads into the summer break third in the MotoGP standings, just 18 points behind championship leader Jorge Martin.
This is a phenomenal outcome for the reigning champion given that Marquez was 102 points off Marco Bezzecchi after the Italian Grand Prix just four races ago. There has been a 106-point swing in his favour since.
Marquez missed the main race at Le Mans and the entire Catalan Grand Prix weekend through injury and has not been fully fit for much, if not all, of the season. And yet, he is now the growing favourite to win the title.
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There is a rising sense of inevitability about Marquez winning the championship from here, particularly with his rivals faltering. Bezzecchi has had a disastrous run of two DNFs, an injury-enforced absence and a race ban, while Fabio Di Giannantonio’s race-ending crash on Sunday raises questions about whether he can sustain a challenge.
It almost feels as if Martin is top of the standings by default after Bezzecchi’s implosion. Fellow Aprilia man Ai Ogura is arguably the form rider on the grid, but Marquez should only get better from here.
Marquez winning the title, given the challenges he has faced this year, would cement his status as arguably the greatest rider in history, but it would also paint a damning picture of the level of the rest of the grid.
The problem for the sport right now, just like it was last year, is that one rider is another level to the rest. There are plenty of other great talents, but one wonders if any will go down as true legends of the sport.
In terms of ability, the closest riders are arguably Pedro Acosta and Fabio Quartararo, but neither of them have the bike to compete right now.
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Fortunately for the sport, Acosta will join Marquez at Ducati next season, and Liberty Media desperately need him to live up to the hype so that the #93 has a genuine rival, like in the sport’s golden era.
Meanwhile, Quartararo will be joining Honda, which could be his ticket back to the front, particularly with the regulations about to change.
If neither of those things happen, then the sport will effectively be waiting for Marquez to retire, or enter decline, to become truly competitive or a sustained period.
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