Marc Marquez: Lewis Hamilton comparisons “a pleasure”

The synchronised narratives of Marc Marquez’s move to the factory Ducati MotoGP team and Lewis Hamilton’s switch from Mercedes to Ferrari in F1 have been a fascination since the winter, and the eight-time World Champion has described it as “a pleasure” to be compared to the British driver.

Marquez enters this weekend’s Grand Prix of the Americas – at the Circuit of the Americas, where he has won seven times in nine starts – as the MotoGP points leader, and said that, although he and “superstar” Hamilton have different “styles”, he can take satisfaction from the comparison with the driver who remains the most successful in F1 history.

“The common thing is that he [Hamilton] changed manufacturer,” Marquez said in the pre-event press conference at this weekend’s MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas.

“He jumped to the red car this year and already he got a good result in that sprint race, qualifying and sprint race, in the China GP.

“And it's a pleasure to me if they compared me with Lewis, because he’s not only a really good driver, also he’s a superstar.

“Of course we have different styles, but always is super nice if they compare you with a great athlete, doesn't matter which sport.”

Marquez’s arrival at Ducati has been more impactful in the opening two rounds of MotoGP than Hamilton’s in the opening two F1 races of the season: two Sprint wins and two Grand Prix victories for Marquez oppose a 10th, a disqualification, and a Sprint victory for Hamilton.