ESPARAGARO LEARNED HE COULDN’T COPY MARQUEZ’S RIDING STYLE

Pol Espargaro joined Honda in 2021 with a clear aim: to measure himself against Marc Marquez and learn what made the six-time premier-class champion so exceptional. The Spaniard had left KTM to share a garage with Marquez, who was widely described as a rider capable of things nobody else could do.

Speaking on the Gas it Out podcast, Espargaro said he wanted to understand Marquez’s speed and become “a bit faster, a bit better.” But working alongside him soon taught Espargaro that studying a rival does not mean being able to reproduce his methods. “There are times where you can’t copy what others are doing,” he said. “You have your own way, but you can’t do it.” He sees a similar challenge in Pedro Acosta, who is also seeking a benchmark as he prepares to move to Ducati.

The results underline the gap between the Honda teammates. Marquez missed four races in 2021 and eight in 2022 through injury, yet scored 255 points to Espargaro’s 156 across their partnership. When Marquez won in Germany and the United States, Espargaro finished tenth; at Misano, however, he followed him across the line for a Honda one-two.

Espargaro also praised Marquez’s openness and emotional honesty. Recent attention focused on Marquez’s subdued reaction after losing the Austria Sprint to Jorge Martin, but Espargaro said that visible frustration is part of what makes him relatable. He believes Marquez has not changed since their time as teammates.

“Thank God Marc is a good guy,” Espargaro joked, before adding that sharing a garage with him can be difficult because “he makes your life so difficult.” Still, he described Marquez as funny, open, natural and “fresh,” saying he does not try to present himself as someone else. “When he’s winning, he’s happy. When he’s losing, he’s sad, he’s angry.”

For Espargaro, that candour is a virtue. He pointed to Marquez’s anger after the latest race and his disappointment on the Sprint podium as moments when his feelings were plain to see. “You can read from his face how he feels,” he said, contrasting that with athletes whose emotions are harder to interpret. Marquez’s directness, Espargaro added, makes him easier to understand both as a fellow rider and as a journalist interviewing him.