It was April 21, 2013, when Marquez, in his first year as a rookie, took his first victory in the major MotoGP class, at the COTA track in Austin, America!
However, Marquez did not look like a rookie for a moment. The Spanish prodigy finished on the podium for the first time in Qatar in April 2013 and then two weeks later dominated the American Grand Prix in Texas, where he became the youngest rider ever to start a major league race from pole position and the youngest to take victory!
Marquez took both of these records from another hero rider for Honda, American prodigy Spencer, who held the record for youngest pole winner since the 1982 Spanish Grand Prix at Jarama, Spain, and the record for youngest winner from the Belgian GP at Spa a few months later.
Humble and extremely intelligent, Marquez despite making history stated . “You can break a record,” he said in Texas. “But in the future, another rider will win a race and be smaller than me.”
After Marquez’s maiden MotoGP win in Texas, his season continued with further amazing results. He fought for the lead and finished on the podium in four of the next five races, having his first DNF at the Italian Grand Prix in June, where he crashed out while holding second place.
The statistics of his first year in the major MotoGP category speak for themselves. In 18 MotoGP races, he reached the podium 16 times, including six wins, plus nine pole positions and 11 fastest laps.
Marquez won the 2013 world championship at the age of 20 years and 266 days, breaking Spencer’s record that had been held since September 4, 1983. The American was 21 years and 258 days old when he won the 500 world title in Imola, Italy, in 1983. .
Spencer said of Marquez’s riding style, he took MotoGP to a whole new level.
