Álex Márquez

Álex Márquez
Márquez at the 2013 British Grand Prix.
Nationality	Spanish
Born	April 23, 1996 Cervera, Spain
Current team	EG 0,0 Marc VDS
Bike number	73
Motorcycle racing career statistics Moto2 World Championship Active years 2015– Manufacturers Kalex 2015 championship position 14th (73 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 19 0 0 0 0 73 Moto3 World Championship Active years 2012–2014 Manufacturers Suter-Honda, KTM, Honda Championships 1 (2014) 2014 championship position 1st (278 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 46 4 15 3 7 518

Álex Márquez i Alentà (born 23 April 1996) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle road racer, and the younger brother of Marc Márquez, who also competes at Grand Prix level. Márquez was the 2012 Spanish Moto3 Championship winner,^[1] and won the 2014 Moto3 World Championship, defeating Jack Miller by two points in the last round at Valencia. In the process, he and Marc became the first brothers to win world motorcycle racing titles. ^[1][2]

Career

National racing

He began the 2010 season in the CEV Buckler 125cc championship, competing with the Monlau Competition team, along with Álex Rins and Niklas Ajo. Márquez did not participate in the opening round at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, as he was not old enough to do so – he did not turn fourteen until five days after the event. He finished eleventh in his first start at Albacete, having qualified tenth. He retired at Jerez due to clutch problems. He added finishes of seventh and sixth at Motorland Aragón and Albacete, before retiring from the final two races at Valencia and Jerez. He finished eleventh in the final riders' championship standings.

In 2011, Márquez battled with Rins for the title, with the championship honours ultimately going to Rins. Márquez won two races during the season – at Motorland Aragón and Albacete – and finished the season as runner-up, 12 points in arrears to Rins. With the championship changing to Moto3 regulations for the 2012 season, Márquez again won two races, at Albacete and Navarra; he won the championship with a fourth-place finish at Albacete.

Moto3 World Championship

Márquez made his world championship début as a wildcard at the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix.^[3] In difficult weather conditions, Márquez scored points with a twelfth-place finish. He also made wildcard appearances at Estoril and Catalunya, scoring points on both occasions, with fifteenth and sixth respectively. After the mid-season break, Márquez moved into the series full-time from the Indianapolis Grand Prix onwards with Ambrogio Racing, replacing Simone Grotzkyj.^[4] He scored points in four of the remaining eight races, and ultimately finished the season in twentieth place in the riders' championship.

In 2013, the Estrella Galicia 0,0 team moved to KTM machinery, with Márquez joining Rins in the team full-time. After predominantly finishing fourth or fifth in the races during the first half of the season, Márquez achieved his first podium finish at the Indianapolis Grand Prix with a second-place finish behind Rins. Márquez recorded three consecutive third-place finishes at Silverstone, Misano and Motorland Aragón, before taking his first career victory at the Japanese Grand Prix. He finished the season in fourth position in the final championship standings.

For 2014, Márquez and Rins remained in the series and started as the championship favourites. However, in the opening third of the season, they were usurped by Ajo Motorsport rider Jack Miller, who won three of the opening five races. Márquez took successive wins in Catalunya and the Netherlands to reduce the deficit from 44 points to 7. Márquez started a run of five top-two finishes at the British Grand Prix, including another victory at Motegi, which saw him move into the championship lead ahead over Miller and open up a 25-point gap.^[5] Despite Miller winning two of the final three races, a third-place finish at the final round in Valencia saw Márquez clinch the title by two points. In the process, he and brother Marc became the first brothers to win world motorcycle racing titles.^[1][2]

Moto2 World Championship

For the 2015 season, Márquez moved up to the Moto2 World Championship with the Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS team.^[6]

Grand Prix motorcycle racing career

By season

Season	Class	Moto	Races	Win	Podiums	Pole	FLaps	Pts	Position
2012	Moto3	Suter-Honda	11	0	0	0	1	27	20th
2013	Moto3	KTM	17	1	5	0	3	213	4th
2014	Moto3	Honda	18	3	10	3	3	278	1st
2015	Moto2	Kalex	18	0	0	0	0	73	14th
2016	Moto2	Kalex	1	0	0	0	0	0*	NC*
Total			65	4	15	3	7	591

* Season still in progress.

Races by year

Year	Class	Bike	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Pos	Points
2012	Moto3	Suter-Honda	QAT	SPA 12	POR 15	FRA	CAT 6	GBR	NED	GER	ITA	IND Ret	CZE 21	RSM Ret	ARA 15	JPN 14	MAL 14	AUS 9	VAL Ret		20th	27
2013	Moto3	KTM	QAT 4	AME Ret	SPA 23	FRA 5	ITA 5	CAT 4	NED 5	GER 5	IND 2	CZE 5	GBR 3	RSM 3	ARA 3	MAL 4	AUS 4	JPN 1	VAL 4		4th	213
2014	Moto3	Honda	QAT 2	AME Ret	ARG 2	SPA 7	FRA 5	ITA Ret	CAT 1	NED 1	GER 4	IND 6	CZE 4	GBR 2	RSM 2	ARA 2	JPN 1	AUS 2	MAL 5	VAL 3	1st	278
2015	Moto2	Kalex	QAT 11	AME 15	ARG 15	SPA 9	FRA Ret	ITA 12	CAT 11	NED 9	GER 18	IND 10	CZE 4	GBR 4	RSM Ret	ARA Ret	JPN 18	AUS 9	MAL Ret	VAL 12	14th	73
2016	Moto2	Kalex	QAT Ret	ARG Ret	AME 11	SPA Ret	FRA	ITA	CAT	NED	GER	GBR	AUT	CZE	RSM	ARA	MAL	JPN	AUS	VAL	NC*	0*

* Season still in progress.

References

1. "Alex Marquez – a new World Champion in the family". MotoGP.com (Dorna Sports). 9 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
2. "Marquez clinches title in third as Miller wins final race". MotoGP.com (Dorna Sports). 9 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
3. "Gran Premio bwin de España – Moto3 Entry list" (PDF). MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
4. "Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix – Moto3 Entry list" (PDF). MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
5. Morrison, Neil (2 December 2014). "Marquez v Miller - round-by-round". Crash.net (Crash Media Group). Retrieved 18 October 2015.
6. "Moto2: Alex Marquez to Marc VDS". Crash.net (Crash Media Group). 1 September 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.

External links

• Alex Márquez rider profile