15-times World Champion Giacomo Agostini has given his view on the rivalry between Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi.
Agostini is the only rider in the history of Grand Prix racing with more race wins than Rossi, but the Italian was beaten by Marquez in the riders’ standings in all but two seasons (2015, 2020) after the Spaniard made his premier class debut in 2013 as he charged to six titles in his first seven top class seasons.
"Marc [Marquez] is my weakness,” Agostini told the Spanish publication Relevo, “because I think he excites the public, the people who go to watch the races.
He's a guy who puts on a show, and everyone loves him."
Rossi, on the other hand, is "A great,” Agostini said.
“A rider with cunning. Someone who wins nine world titles has to be good by instinct.”
The rivalry between the two rarely bore on-track battles, especially outside of 2015, something Agostini puts down to timing and Marquez’s own mentality.
Even still, it is still regarded as one of the most intense rivalries in the past 10 years of MotoGP.
“They were not at the same age,” he said. “One had started, and the other had not. This could have conditioned the final results, you know?
“Although I recognize that Rossi also generated enthusiasm [...] The truth is that, thinking about it, for me Marquez is more reckless, daring, bold.
“He is a fighter, and people may like this more. Marc never gives up, he is pure spectacle.”
