Rossi vs Marquez

holdin09 · 2 Nov 2018 at 18:40

I’m really torn between who’s the best rider in their prime. Marquez has won against harder competition but Rossi was the best tactician going.

What do people think?

Shimmy · 2 Nov 2018 at 21:37

For me Marc, he's won championships on bikes that haven't been the strongest and is simply doing things weekly that no-one else has.
Plus he's maturing a lot and improving every year which is a scary prospect.
He will accept a podium now instead of making a do or die effort to win a race where the pace isn't quite there.

Next couple years will give us good yard stick also with Jorge on the sister bike.

Great time to be following MotoGP!

Colonel_Klinck · 2 Nov 2018 at 21:42

Marquez is an incredible talent and has changed MotoGP with his style and I love his never say die and aggression but Rossi for his longevity and the different machines he's won on, 2 strokes and 4 strokes is still the GOAT for me. In 10 years maybe Marquez will take that mantle but not yet.

holdin09 · 3 Nov 2018 at 17:20

No one will have the amount of fans as Rossi he is massively followed every track they go to.

Nick1881 · 3 Nov 2018 at 22:37

I've not watched MotoGP long enough to have Rossi's best years. I have certainly watched Marquez go from strength to strength, he does some amazing things. I think he fan base has grown a lot too, probably rivalling VR46 at some places it seems.

I don't think I saw Stoner, a lot of people say he had incredible raw talent.

Was Pedrosa ever that great? Is the Honda not great and Marquez is dragging it way up or has Pedrosa just totally passed it?

Will be interesting to see if Lorenzo can match Marc next year.

The_Abyss · 4 Nov 2018 at 00:48

Rossi's achievements have been amazing. But Marquez has just raised the bar to a new level.

Shimmy · 4 Nov 2018 at 00:53

Nick1881 said:
Was Pedrosa ever that great? Is the Honda not great and Marquez is dragging it way up or has Pedrosa just totally passed it?

Early in his career Pedrosa was THE top prospect, he beat Lorenzo/Stoner/Dovizioso in 125/250cc championships winning all the titles. So he's always had the talent and probably still has.
He's had a lot of success in MotoGP but has had an unbelievable streak of bad luck in getting injured.

Pedrosa's problem in recent years has been the change in tyres, they require much more physical effort to get the necessary heat into them and he's limited by his build so he can no longer extract the pace anymore.

Also pretty much everyone in the Paddock has said that Marquez won the title this year, not Honda. That includes people from Honda and Ducati saying that.. Marquez is just plain ridiculous.

holdin09 · 4 Nov 2018 at 08:26

Nick1881 said:
I've not watched MotoGP long enough to have Rossi's best years. I have certainly watched Marquez go from strength to strength, he does some amazing things. I think he fan base has grown a lot too, probably rivalling VR46 at some places it seems.

I don't think I saw Stoner, a lot of people say he had incredible raw talent.

Was Pedrosa ever that great? Is the Honda not great and Marquez is dragging it way up or has Pedrosa just totally passed it?

Will be interesting to see if Lorenzo can match Marc next year.

Stoner was great he won a Ducati that no one else could ride. Wish he stuck around as he was at Honda and could have been there with Marquez.

holdin09 · 4 Nov 2018 at 08:29

Shimmy said:
Early in his career Pedrosa was THE top prospect, he beat Lorenzo/Stoner/Dovizioso in 125/250cc championships winning all the titles. So he's always had the talent and probably still has.
He's had a lot of success in MotoGP but has had an unbelievable streak of bad luck in getting injured.

Pedrosa's problem in recent years has been the change in tyres, they require much more physical effort to get the necessary heat into them and he's limited by his build so he can no longer extract the pace anymore.

Also pretty much everyone in the Paddock has said that Marquez won the title this year, not Honda. That includes people from Honda and Ducati saying that.. Marquez is just plain ridiculous.

Rossi’s first season on a Yamaha he won it, if I remember rightly the Honda was the best that year and he would have stayed there if he didn’t have a fall out with them.

Bar · 4 Nov 2018 at 08:56

Always liked Cal due to being a great rider and being on an independent bike, what he can achieve against the works teams is brilliant.

the-evaluator · 5 Nov 2018 at 14:21

Marquez for me. Rossi is an amazing rider but even at his peak he didn't have the bike control skills that Marquez does.

Rossi has been key in the success of the sport, the man is an icon and if it wasn't for his skill and personality the sport wouldn't be in the same position it is now. Marquez will take away the records that Rossi has but there's no chance he'll take away the status that Rossi has. The joke is that every race is a home race for Rossi and that'll never change.

englishpremier · 11 Nov 2018 at 08:39

holdin09 said:
Stoner was great he won a Ducati that no one else could ride. Wish he stuck around as he was at Honda and could have been there with Marquez.

This. Stoner was simply unbelievable. If it wasn't for his moaning, he might have been better liked. I think Marquez would have had a tough time against him had.

Rossi has to be the best all round talent though. Marquez is developing, so may match that though in the future.

the-evaluator · 12 Nov 2018 at 10:19

It would have been amazing if Stoner, Rossi and Marquez were all at their peak and competing against each other.