Stoner ranks the four best MotoGP riders with a surprise pick at the top

For fans in the 2000s, many people’s alligiances would sway with either Rossi or Marquez as the best MotoGP rider of all time.

But a former two-time champion, once with Ducati and once with Honda, Stoner has a different perspective to many and shared his thoughts in a recent interview with La Gazzetta dello sport.

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Stoner competed against Rossi for his entire premier class career, and the Italian was the only rider on his list that he’s raced against.

The other three are legends in their own right but Stoner picked his fellow Australian because of the success he had both before and after his career-threatening injuries.

Stoner also spoke about the most underrated rider, which in his opinion was current KTM test rider Dani Pedrosa.

Stoner said: “For me, Giacomo [Agostini] and Mick [Doohan] without a doubt. He [Doohan] doesn’t get considered with some others because he didn’t win as many championships or races as the others, but nobody knows what it was like to come back from the injury. 

“The other riders that achieved more than him never had to deal with the injuries he did. I don’t believe anybody would have succeeded the way he did. 

“So Mick is at the top for me. From that, probably Valentino [Rossi], Marc [Marquez]. It’s difficult to say any others. 

“I think the most underachieving was Dani Pedrosa. When you get to ride with him and understand what he was able to do, as such a small guy, nobody can understand. 

“I was already too small for MotoGP. I was 59 kilos and I think Dani was 55/56. Everybody thinks being lighter was better but they are big, heavy, powerful bikes. 

“You are not so stable when you are small. For me, it was amazing what Dani was able to do. Racing with him my whole career, no one can understand how fast he was.”