Marc Marquez won the Sprint race at the Grand Prix of Aragon on Saturday. In what’s become almost an inevitability in this format, his brother Alex Marquez was second.
Having won the shorter race at Silverstone last time out, Alex was the Sprint runner-up for the seventh time in eight weekends. Marc returned to the top step after his streak was broken.
The Ducati factory rider started on pole position and was expected to cruise into the distance based on his superiority throughout the weekend. But a sluggish getaway saw Marc fall to third behind Alex and VR46’s Franco Morbidelli.
He swiftly repassed Morbidelli, though, and then executed a clean move on the inside of his brother into turn one. In textbook fashion, he eked out a small cushion and controlled the race until the chequered flag.
Marc has now stretched his advantage at the top of the standings to 27 points. It increasingly looks like a family affair in the title race after Francesco Bagnaia struggled again in the Aragon Grand Prix Sprint, finishing 12th.
Alex Marquez under fire for tame Marc Marquez defence at Aragon Grand Prix
Alex was about a bike length ahead of Marc approaching the first-corner braking zone, but he offered little resistance. The championship leader cut off any attempt at a switch-back manoeuvre by deliberately running deep into the corner.
It was a neat move from the six-time MotoGP champion, but some fans felt that his brother made it all too easy. Alex hadn’t won a Grand Prix coming into this year, but now he has a legitimate shot at the championship.
“Interesting approach from Alex Marquez,” one wrote on X. “He’d rather take the points than show any wheel-to-wheel battle against his brother.”
“Unless Alex learns to treat Marc the way Marc treats Alex, he won’t ever reach his full potential,” another warned. “Alex is very aggressive with other riders, but not Marc. Alex seems scared of his brother.”
“Alex fighting tooth and nail against his brother there!!” a sarcastic comment read.
The Marquez brothers were called ‘the Williams sisters of MotoGP’ in that it ‘doesn’t matter who wins’ as long as the trophy stays in the family. Critics argued that the tennis legends, Venus and Serena, lowered their intensity in their matches.
A different viewer likened Alex’s defence to a famous meme showing a yellow gate that can be easily bypassed. He might argue that it was pointless to put up a fight given the scale of his sibling’s dominance at this circuit.
“Look how much room he leaves him!” a final fan protested.
Kevin Schwantz shares his problem with ‘boring’ Marc Marquez
Alex’s biggest advantage in the championship up to this point has been consistency. His crash at the French GP ended his 100% top-six record, but he’s still recorded 12 top-two finishes this year.
In terms of outright pace, Marc clearly seems to have the advantage on the GP25. But he’s also crashed twice on Sundays, blowing potential victories in Austin and Jerez.
Coming into the year, there was still some doubt as to his ultimate level after his prolonged injury hell. But Marquez is looking better than ever in right-hand corners, which have been something of a problem area since he broke his arm.
Many feel that self-destruction is all that can stop him this year. Kevin Schwantz admits Marquez can make races ‘boring’, with other riders powerless to respond.
