Marc Marquez chasing unique age record which belongs to Valentino Rossi

Marc Marquez, who holds the record as the youngest premier-class champion in history, now has the chance to become the oldest - at least of the four-stroke ‘MotoGP’ era, from 2002.

Marquez replaced Freddie Spencer as the youngest champion by winning the MotoGP title, as a rookie, at the age of 20 years and 266 days in 2013.

Five more titles followed over the next six years before complications from the 2020 arm fracture at Jerez brought his world championship run to a sudden halt.

Marquez has won six races since 2020, three of them after leaving Repsol Honda for Gresini Ducati last year, where he finished third in the world championship.

As Marquez has acknowledged, promotion to the official Ducati team for 2025 and 2026 means a title challenge is again expected of him.

If the Spaniard, who turns 32 next month, succeeds in either season, he’ll be older than former rival Valentino Rossi, who lifted his final 2009 title for Yamaha at 30 years and 251 days.

However, Rossi later came within five points of winning the 2015 crown, while the oldest premier-class champion in history is Englishman Leslie Graham at 37 years and 340 days during the inaugural 1949 season.

“I prefer the first one, the youngest!” Marquez joked when asked about the possibility of being the ‘oldest’ of the MotoGP era.

“For me, more than the oldest is after the injury, the comeback, which for me is the most important.

“Last year, I proved to myself that never give up and try to be confident in yourself is one of the secrets. I will try this year to keep the same mentality. Keep enjoying.

“I have won a lot in the past. In the future, we will see, but after the injury, everything that arrives is a present.”

Reflecting on how he has changed as a rider over the years, Marquez added:

“More than young Marc and old Marc is the experience you have during your career. And that changed a lot. Not winning, the bad moments.

“Because when you are winning, you don't learn a lot because you are doing the correct things in the correct way.

“Then when you have a bad moment, difficult experience, that is when you are learning more and when you start to realise what is winning.

“Because when you are there on the top, you don't understand.

“So with experience, you try to approach some things in a different way. But also you need to work a little bit more if you want to keep those young riders behind.”

Newly crowned champion Jorge Martin became the oldest first-time title winner of the ‘MotoGP’ era at 26 years and 293 days.

Marquez’s Ducati team-mate Francesco Bagnaia won the first of his two titles at 25 years and 296 days.