With their joint victories yesterday, Marc and Alex become first brothers to win Grand Prix motorcycle races on a single day.
On September 9th, 1951, Italian brothers Alfredo and Albino Milani were victorious at the Grand Prix of Nations at Monza in the 500cc and sidecar races, respectively. Yesterday at the Catalan Grand Prix, Marc and Alex Marquez became the first brothers to win at the same round of the World Championship in two-wheeled racing.
The sons of Julia and Roser live and train together, and yesterday demonstrated on track at the Barcelona-Catalunya Circuit that they share a winning gene. Both riders arrived in the World Championship with Repsol backing and for Alex, the Moto3 victory yesterday was the second of his still nascent World Championship career, after his victory in Japan last season. That day, his older brother finished second to move one step closer to his dream: To be MotoGP World Champion.
After a start to the season in which he had achieved two second places, all the work carried out with HRC on the development of the new Honda NSF250RW was rewarded when Alex crossed the finish line more than three seconds ahead of his nearest rival. The win was replicated three hours later by his brother Marc in one of the most beautiful MotoGP races in which he has starred, ridden brilliantly for his seventh consecutive victory.
The next challenge for the Marquez brothers takes place on June 28th, at the Dutch TT Assen.
Marc Marquez >> Audio
“I’m very happy ‒perhaps even more so for my brother than for myself! Alex deserved it, because he had been looking for a win for a long time. Last year he got one in Japan and he was finding it hard to repeat the feat, despite the great work he was doing both at home and on the track. He had been very close for several races and it is important for him to get his second win in the World Championship. After his result I felt a little more pressure on me, because I also wanted to win and to make it a perfect day. On Saturday he took pole and I couldn’t manage it, but yesterday both of us had a great race ‒especially him. He set his own pace, like a veteran, and pushed through to the end. I am proud to see my little brother also winning; It must mean that we are doing something well at home. I think that for his morale the win is also important, because it shows that he is not only Marc’s brother, but that he is Alex Marquez and he rides very fast.”
Alex Marquez >> Audio
“It’s been a very special day, because I got my first win of the season, at home and coinciding with the seventh win in a row for Marc. It is the first time that two brothers have managed to win World Championship races on the same day and I think that this is the reward for all the work that we do. Marc helps me a lot at home and we are always training together, so this makes me happy for him as much as for me. I will try to enjoy the moment and keep training to go to Assen at my best”
