Aleix Espargaro’s prediction about Marc Marquez is menacing for MotoGP rivals

Aleix Espargaro has offered a prediction about Marc Marquez’s season which might worry their MotoGP rivals.

The Portuguese MotoGP at Portimao, the second round of the 2024 campaign, is this weekend.

Marquez is still adjusting to his year-old Ducati but a P4 finish at the season-opener in Qatar represented progress from his drab final year with Honda.

The chat in the paddock is about how far Marquez can truly go when he is fully acclimated to his new bike.

"Marc is, without a doubt, the most talented rider in the championship,” Espargaro, who has known him since they were both children, was quoted by Marca.

“With the best bike on the grid... one plus one equals two.

“We will see how long he takes to get there, but he will be one of the strongest…

"I know the Gresini team well, since I raced with the Aprilia Gresini team.

“The team is very familiar and pleasant. It has everything to show that it can win.”

But Espargaro also knows that the form and consistency of reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia is tough to overcome.

Factory Ducati rider Bagnaia, this year riding the developed GP24, won the first grand prix of the year to begin his title defence on top.

"Pecco has a much higher level than people believe,” Espargaro insisted.

“Because winning two consecutive titles with the rivalry that exists is very difficult.

“He is the man to beat.”

Espargaro is well known to be close friends with Jorge Martin, his fellow Spaniard who missed out on the championship on the final day of 2023.

Pramac’s Martin won the Qatar sprint and is immediately Bagnaia’s nearest threat.

"He has shown very high speed from the last part of the season in 2023 until now,” Espargaro noted.

“He will also be the man to beat.”

And what about Espargaro’s own hopes?

In 2022 he finished fourth in the standings, his best-ever result. He was sixth last year.

The oldest rider on the grid, aged 34, is first aiming to establish Aprilia as the nearest contender to the dominant Ducatis.

But there is optimism around how Espargaro might fare this season.

"The goal is to finish in the top three of the championship,” he said.

“We have been close for the last two years, I hope this is the right time.”

Espargaro’s first weekend of 2024 was bizarre.

He awoke on Sunday in Qatar believing he could win, after a brilliant conclusion to Saturday’s sprint.

But rear grip unexpectedly blighted him, and he trudged home in eighth.

Portimao, this weekend, offers the next chance to impress.