MotoGP's Marquez era

Just five rounds remain in this year's MotoGP season, and there's every chance that we could be crowning the series' first rookie champion since Kenny Roberts Sr. all the way back in 1978.

Marc Marquez's performances so far this year have marked the young Spaniard as nothing short as a phenomenon. His pace isn't surprising - he demonstrated that lucidly in the Moto2 and 125cc classes - but his sheer consistency is.

Marquez may be riding the best bike in the field, but the fact he has finished on the podium in every race bar one (the sole exception being Mugello, where he crashed) must give his opposition some serious food for thought. If he's this good in his first season, how good is he going to be three or four years down the line?

Marquez has already beaten Valentino Rossi's benchmark of 10 podium finishes in his rookie season, set in the his first season on 500cc machinery in 2000. And, arguably, Marquez has been able to do so in the face of stiffer opposition than the Italian encountered.

Jorge Lorenzo has been, certainly in recent races, Marquez's most formidable foe. The Yamaha rider has re-gained the momentum he lost when he fractured his collarbone during practice for the Dutch TT, winning the last two races in very contrasting styles - coming out on top in an epic last-lap duel with Marquez at Silverstone, and simply galloping away from the rest of the field at Misano.

Yamaha are bullish about their prospects for the rest of the year, but it will be no easy task for Lorenzo to deny his compatriot Marquez the crown. The gap between the pair stands at 34 points; with five races left, Marquez can afford to finish second at each of them to assure himself of the title.

What about the other rider still realistically in the title hunt, Marquez's Repsol Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa? Unfortunately, his chances of finally claiming that elusive maiden premier-class crown are looking frail, despite being level on points with Lorenzo.

For one thing, Pedrosa cannot rely on having a bike advantage in the same way that Lorenzo may be able to. He has to beat Marquez purely on merit, something he hasn't managed to do since Catalunya all the way back in June. You have to go back further still, to Le Mans in May, for Pedrosa's last race victory.

As Toby Moody pointed out in a recent column for Autosport, it must be pretty demoralising to see your teammate dislocate his collarbone mere hours before the start of a race, just as Marquez did at Silverstone, only for him to beat you just as easily as he managed at the last race.

The situation must surely beg the question of whether Pedrosa, the man who boasts the unenviable record of having racked up the most premier class wins without having won a title, is ever going to break his duck.

It's mighty unfortunate for Pedrosa that, just as Casey Stoner departed the scene whilst still more or less at the peak of his powers, he ends up with perhaps the most impressive rookie the championship has ever seen as his teammate.

Back in April, I thought Pedrosa's window of opportunity, before Marquez would get well and truly up to speed, would last at least a year, particularly given his strong form towards the end of last year. But, in reality, it lasted less than half a season. It's difficult to see where he goes from here.

It's a mighty shame, in many ways, that Stoner decided to leave MotoGP at the time he did. Had he remained this year, Marquez may have been forced to ride a satellite Honda, thereby giving us a tantalising glimpse of his potential rather before having his considerable talent unleashed by a factory ride.

What's more, a Stoner-Marquez battle for supremacy, both aboard Repsol Hondas, would have been a spectacle to behold. A Stoner comeback seems a dim prospect at best, but it would provide a welcome layer of intrigue to proceedings if Marquez were to start to dominate in a Rossi-like fashion.

The tragic death of Marco Simoncelli at Sepang towards the end of 2011 has also, in retrospect, robbed fans of another potential rival to Marquez. The lanky Italian was poised to be the ideal successor to Rossi in the lineage of Italian Grand Prix racing heroes, and would have surely been capable of at least giving Marquez a decent run for his money.

Without wishing to take anything away from the likes of Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone, it seems that Italian fans have a while to wait yet for their next real championship contender. Spain, on the other hand, seem to have no shortage of talent making their way through the Moto2 and Moto3 classes.

The next Spaniard poised to make his MotoGP debut is Pol Espargaro, Marquez's closest challenger in Moto2 last season. Yamaha appear to be hoping that he can become a serious threat to Marquez sooner rather than later, having signed Moto2 title contender Pol Espargaro to ride for Tech 3 Yamaha next season.

But, Espargaro may be forced to wait for a factory Yamaha seat for a few seasons yet. Lorenzo, probably the Japanese factory's biggest asset, is going nowhere soon, whilst Rossi's marketing value can hardly be underestimated even if he's not quite the rider he was five years ago.

That said, Yamaha would surely jump on the chance to sign Marquez if he was to become available. MotoGP's commercial rights holder, Dorna Sports, would no doubt love such a move to come off, as it would fuel fan interest much as Rossi's switch to Yamaha from Honda did back in 2004.

That particular plot-line, combined with Rossi's peerless charisma and his rivalries with riders such as Max Biaggi and Sete Gibernau were sufficient to maintain interest in the sport even while 'The Doctor' set about racking up the wins. Contrast that to the Mick Doohan era of the mid-to-late nineties, when spectator interest dipped and World Superbikes consequently took up the slack.

At the height of Doohan's supremacy in 1997, there were few, if any, other riders in the field who could be considered of the Australian's calibre. That shouldn't be the case in a hypothetical Marquez era, if only because Lorenzo still theoretically has at least five or so good years left in him.

But, it's too soon to say whether up-and-coming riders such as Espargaro and Scott Redding will be good enough to challenge Marquez. Let's hope that they are, or else this next chapter of MotoGP history may not be looked back upon particularly fondly.

MotoGP mid-season review

With MotoGP midway through its annual summer break, it's time to look back at the first part of what has so far been a captivating season and rate the riders - who have been the star pupils and who needs to do more homework?

Marc Marquez (E, Repsol Honda), 1st - 163pts                            A+
As early as the second round of the season at Austin, when Marquez became the sport's youngest ever race-winner, it was clear that the reigning Moto2 champion had the potential to go all the way in his debut season at this level. In a campaign that so far has even put Valentino Rossi's 500cc debut season back in 2000 to shame, Marquez has notched up three wins, two second places and three third places, meaning he has been on the podium at every round bar one - when he crashed in the closing stages at Mugello. It will be fascinating to see how the 20-year old responds to the challenge of preserving his 16-point lead for the remainder of the year.

Dani Pedrosa (E, Repsol Honda), 2nd - 147pts                              A-
Just as Pedrosa was finally set to emerge from the shadow of the two-time champion Casey Stoner, the pint-sized Spaniard's title aspirations have been dealt a body blow by the arrival of Marquez in the other side of the Repsol Honda garage. Pedrosa responded well after his defeat at Austin with back-to-back victories at Jerez and Le Mans, consolidated by a pair of second places, but his challenge has faltered since his injury sustained in practice at the Sachsenring. He'll need to be firing on all cylinders for the rest of the year if he is to overcome Marquez to take a well overdue first premier class title.

Jorge Lorenzo (E, Yamaha Factory Team), 3rd - 137pts               A
Like his countryman Pedrosa, Lorenzo has seen his title aspirations damaged by injury. More impressive than any of his three victories at Qatar, Mugello and Catalunya was his superhuman ride to fifth in the Dutch TT just two days after suffering a fractured collarbone in a crash during practice. He was forced to miss the following race at Sachsenring after he aggravated the injury in another crash, but soldiered to sixth position a week later at Laguna Seca. If titles were won on virtue of sheer bloody-mindedness, Lorenzo would be champion already, but there's a lot of work ahead to reel in the Repsol Honda riders in the latter half of the year.

Valentino Rossi (I, Yamaha Factory Team), 4th - 117pts              B+
Rossi's season started auspiciously enough with a strong second place at Qatar behind teammate Lorenzo, but things appeared to tail off somewhat after that. Five more races went by until he returned to the podium, taking advantage of his teammate's injury to take a universally popular victory at Assen, backed up by a brace of solid, if unspectacular podiums in the next two races. Those results prove "The Doctor" can still cut it at the front of the MotoGP field, albeit perhaps not as consistently as we have been used to previously. A title challenge is still within the realm of possibility, but more wins will be essential to keep Rossi's hopes alive.

Cal Crutchlow (GB, Monster Tech 3 Yamaha), 5th - 116pts         A
2013 has seen Crutchlow blossom into one of the championship's most impressive performers. The Coventry-born rider managed to take his satellite Tech 3 bike to an incredible four podium finishes in five races, including the second step twice at Le Mans and the Sachsenring, as well as to a superb pole position at Assen. His early fall at Catalunya and a mysteriously indifferent ride to seventh at Laguna Seca have been the only noticeable blots on an otherwise unspoiled copybook for Crutchlow, who must be desperately hoping he can bag a maiden win before he moves to the struggling Ducati team for the 2014 season.

Stefan Bradl (D, LCR Honda), 6th - 84pts                                     B+
It was a shaky start to the season for Bradl, who fell from his bike in three of the first four rounds, but since then the German has begun to rival Crutchlow for the honour of the year's outstanding non-factory rider in his sophomore year in the premier class. Fourth place at Mugello marked the start of five successive top-six finishes, the latest of which was a highly impressive ride from pole position to second place at Laguna Seca. That upturn in form has proven sufficient to guarantee Bradl another season within the HRC stable, though he'll have to do more to be in with any chance of a full factory ride in years to come.

Andrea Dovizioso (I, Ducati Team), 7th - 81pts                             A-
Much like last year, it's difficult to find too much fault with the performances of Dovizioso, who has been the only rider in the field to have scored points at every race this season. Unlike last year however, when the Italian could be expected to challenge for a podium on a good day with the Tech 3 team, Ducati's struggles have largely relegated the talented Italian to a series of private battles with teammate Nicky Hayden in the lower half of the top ten. Fourth place at Le Mans, when the conditions masked the bike's lack of pace to a degree, has been the highlight, along with a well-earned fifth place on home turf in the dry at Mugello.

Alvaro Bautista (E, Gresini Honda), 8th - 71pts                            C+
The latter half of 2012 seemed to suggest that Bautista may be ready to prove his worthiness of factory machinery, but the first half of this year's campaign has been underwhelming in comparison to his fellow satellite Honda rider Bradl. In addition to back-to-back crashes at Mugello and Catalunya, the Spaniard has been largely outpaced by the former Moto2 champion, his best finish of fourth at Laguna Seca coming on a day where Bradl was busy fighting Marquez for the win. Bautista will need to find a way back on to the podium before the year is out to be assured of maintaining his seat at the Gresini outfit for next year.

Nicky Hayden (US, Ducati Team), 9th - 65pts                               B
The MotoGP paddock will be a poorer place next year if, after losing his factory Ducati ride for next year, Hayden takes the opportunity to bid the series farewell. While the "Kentucky Kid" may have been outscored by teammate Dovizioso, the pair have finished very close together at the majority of races this season, no more so than the most recent round at Laguna Seca where he narrowly pipped Dovizioso to eighth place in front of his home fans. Hayden still undoubtedly has much to offer; it's simply a question of whether any other team is willing to eschew youth and exuberance in favour of the 2006 champion's services.

Aleix Espargaro (E, Power Electronics Aspar), 10th - 52pts         A
Quite simply the class of the CRT field, it's a huge injustice that Espargaro looks set to be overlooked for a prototype ride in 2014. The Spaniard's crash at Laguna Seca was his first real mistake of the season, before which he had been the first CRT rider home in each and every race. Admittedly, the Aspar-run ART bike is demonstrably superior to its rivals in the class, but the way Espargaro has put more experienced teammate Randy de Puniet to shame - as well as certain prototype riders on occasion - has been highly impressive.

Bradley Smith (GB, Monster Tech 3 Yamaha), 11th - 51pts        C
Though it's not unreasonable to expect most MotoGP rookies (Marquez aside) to take half a season or so to find their feet, there comes a time when they need to begin showing what they are made of. It's been an underwhelming first nine races for Smith, who could probably have benefited from a further year of Moto2 competition before making the step up. Still, the Oxford-born rider has made commendably few mistakes, taking a best finish of sixth at the Sachsenring, but it's time Smith added some more speed to his consistency.

Michele Pirro (I, Pramac Ducati), 12th - 36pts                              B
In addition to two outings as 'wildcard' for the beleaguered Ducati team, test rider Pirro has found himself thrust into the limelight on no fewer than four other occasions as a result of Ben Spies' injuries. The Italian has acquitted himself well in both scenarios, making few errors and measuring up well to his principal opposition, compatriot Andrea Iannone. Taking the 'lab bike' to a creditable seventh place at Mugello has been Pirro's finest hour so far, and if Spies remains on the sidelines there could be more assured performances to come.

Andrea Iannone (I, Pramac Ducati), 13th - 24pts                          B-
The transition from Moto2 to MotoGP for the rider they call "Crazy Joe" has not been an easy one, and the volatility that prevented Iannone from reaching his potential in the intermediate class shows little sign of mellowing. Crashes at Jerez and Catalunya have taken their toll on the Italian's points tally, as has an injury sustained in practice for the Sachsenring which has seen Iannone miss two races. There have been some solid finishes though, not least of all back-to-back top tens in the first two rounds of the year ahead of teammate Spies.

Hector Barbera (E, Avintia Blusens), 14th - 24pts                       B
Stepping down from a prototype to a CRT bike must have been a difficult pill to swallow for Barbera. Despite that, the Spaniard has put his teammate and former 250cc sparring partner Hiroshi Aoyama in the shade so far this year, and more often than not he has been the first user of the FTR chassis across the line, even breaching the top ten on two occasions. It's not all been plain sailing for Barbera though, with a crash at Catalunya and a subdued ride at Assen among the low points of the first half of the season.

Randy de Puniet (F, Power Electronics Aspar), 15th - 19pts        C
Whereas Aspar teammates de Puniet and Espargaro were relatively evenly matched in 2012, this year the pendulum has swung decisively in favour of the latter. The Frenchman continues to crash far too frequently for a rider of his experience, more than likely trying to compensate for the inadequacy of his CRT bike, and has been regularly outpaced by Espargaro all season. That de Puniet is being linked with Suzuki's forthcoming MotoGP return shows nevertheless that he is still highly regarded; it may be just the thing to reinvigorate his career.

To see my Formula One half-term report, click here.

Rossi: There's life left in "The Doctor" yet

Had you suggested, after Valentino Rossi's triumph at the Malaysian Grand Prix back in October 2010, that it would take the better part of three years for him to win his next MotoGP race, chances are you would have been laughed out of the room.

Yet, before the Italian rider's unexpected triumph at the Dutch TT at Assen almost two weeks ago, it seemed as if Rossi's sixth victory at Sepang would go down in history as his 79th and last in the top tier of motorcycle racing.

Regardless of whether you're a fan of the man they call "The Doctor", you can't deny that Rossi returning to the top step of the podium comes as positive news for the championship - not only because it injects some much needed variety in the Spanish hegemony that has prevailed recently, but also because of the headlines it has generated.

Rossi is to motorcycle racing is essentially what Roger Federer is to tennis. It's the familiar sporting tale of the experienced star striving to fend off the inexorable advances of the next generation; there's always a certain romance when someone like Rossi is able to rekindle some of the old magic and stick it to the upstarts.

Rossi has returned to the factory Yamaha team this season, for whom he previously won the MotoGP title in 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2009, after two years of what can only be described as profuse struggle at Ducati.

Few doubted that the Rossi-Ducati partnership - a match made in heaven for Italian fans - would be a success when it was announced in the summer of 2010. After all, Casey Stoner, the man whom Rossi would replace, had been winning races aboard the red machine that year, while Rossi was still more or less at the peak of his powers.

With just three podium finishes to show for his two seasons at Ducati however, it came as no surprise when it was announced last summer that Rossi would be departing the team and returning to Yamaha to race alongside his old nemesis Jorge Lorenzo.

The pair had been teammates at Yamaha from 2008 to 2010, and some close on-track battles, most notably Rossi's breathtaking last corner lunge on Lorenzo at Catalunya in 2009, led to an increasingly acrimonious relationship between the pair that was said to be part of the reason for Valentino's move to Ducati.

Lorenzo has since won the title himself on two occasions - firstly in 2010, after Rossi's challenge was derailed by a practice crash at Mugello that ruled him out of four races, and again last year after a closely fought battle with Honda rider Dani Pedrosa.

In 2008, it was Lorenzo, at the time the reigning 250cc champion, who had everything to prove whilst Rossi was the undisputed number one. Five years on, and it's the seven-times champion that has been forced to re-establish his credentials with Lorenzo now considered by many the best in the business.

A competitive second place behind Lorenzo at the season-opener in Qatar was just about as good a start as Rossi fans could have hoped for after two years away from Yamaha. On that basis, few would have foreseen that the rider of the #46 would be absent from the podium for the next five races.

Two fourth places, a sixth, a twelfth after falling in the damp at Le Mans and a retirement as a result of a first-lap crash on home soil at Mugello left Rossi languishing in fifth place in the standings, 63 points away from leader Pedrosa and one place behind satellite Yamaha rider Cal Crutchlow.

Even those, myself included, that before the season started had expected Rossi to give Lorenzo a serious run for his money were beginning to find themselves questioning whether the 34-year old's star was irreversibly on the wane. Time was certainly running out for "The Doctor" to diagnose the cause of his competitive illness.

The turning point came a week before the Dutch TT, when Rossi claimed to have made a "breakthrough" during a test session at Aragon. The Italian explained that with the help of some set-up changes, he had been able to rediscover the "feel" in his braking, a lack of which had been previously holding him back.

Additionally, the fact that Lorenzo broke his collarbone during practice for the Assen race meant that there be one less bike standing between him and the top step of the podium, and that Rossi would become the sole focal point for Yamaha's efforts for the weekend.

As it turned out, Lorenzo incredibly took the start of the race and finished in a superb fifth place in spite of his injuries. But, the day without doubt belonged to Rossi, who took a victory every bit as convincing as those MotoGP fans witnessed during his early-to-mid 2000s heyday.

The burning question now is whether Rossi can replicate a similar performance this weekend at the the German Sachsenring circuit. If he genuinely turned a corner during testing at Aragon, there's no reason to think why not, and the fact that Lorenzo will once again not be at full fitness makes the race another golden opportunity for Rossi.

His Assen victory - the 80th premier class win of his career - has cut the gap between him and the championship lead to 51 points. With eleven races still to run, and thus a total of 275 points left up for grabs, that's far from an insurmountable deficit.

At 34 years of age however, Rossi isn't getting any younger. Realistically, 2013 is likely to be his last real stab at championship glory. The odds are of course stacked firmly against Rossi, with bookmakers still offering up to 50/1 for him to pip Pedrosa, Lorenzo and rookie sensation Marc Marquez to the post.

Just imagine the publicity MotoGP would enjoy if Rossi could overcome those odds to take an eighth premier class title. It would be just what "The Doctor" ordered...