Marc Marquez chases unique Valentino Rossi tally, but there are external factors

One more MotoGP win would be enough for Marc Marquez to equal Valentino Rossi in a rather specific all-time list.

Winning at the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend added Balaton Park to the list of circuits where Marc Marquez has taken victory in MotoGP.

Balaton was making its debut on the MotoGP calendar, and Marquez made it the 22nd circuit at which he has taken a premier class victory.

22 puts Marquez one behind Valentino Rossi on the list for most circuits won at in the MotoGP class, Rossi having won at 23 different tracks during his 22-season premier class career.

Rossi is not top of the list, though – Mick Doohan took 500cc World Championship victories at 24 different tracks in his career.

Marc Marquez can match Valentino Rossi tally

Marquez, then, requires one more win to match Rossi, two more to catch Doohan, and three more to take the record for himself.

The issue with chasing this record is it’s dependent on new circuits being added to the calendar, which doesn’t happen every year.

Even when it does, you have to be in a position to win. In 2023, for example, the Buddh International Circuit made its debut on the MotoGP calendar but Marquez was riding a Honda RC213V that hadn’t been capable of winning for almost two years by then. Then Buddh was taken off the calendar and Marquez’s chance was gone.

Balaton is a clear contrast to Buddh in that respect, the circuit’s maiden MotoGP race taking place after six straight grand prix victories for Marquez on the factory Ducati.

Can Marc Marquez claim record with wins at 25 tracks?

So where are the chances for Marquez to increase his tally of circuits that he’s won at in MotoGP?

Well, there are two more chances for Marquez to take first-time victories at circuits coming up this year.

The Mandalika International Street Circuit in Indonesia is the first of those on 3–5 October, marking the second flyaway race of the late-season Asian tour.

Mandalika made its MotoGP debut in 2022 when Miguel Oliveira won in the rain; then Francesco Bagnaia famously won in 2023 in one of the more dramatic weekends of his title battle that year against Jorge Martin; while Martin himself was able to grab redemption in 2024 with a dominant victory.

So, three winners in three years at Mandalika. If Marquez can make himself the fourth in four editions of the race there, he would tie Rossi on 23 circuits.

The Autodromo Internacional do Algarve would present an opportunity for Marquez to move onto 24 circuits and tie Doohan when the Portuguese Grand Prix takes place there on 7–9 November.

The Algarve venue debuted in 2020. Miguel Oliveira won on that occasion; then it hosted two races in 2021, with Fabio Quartararo winning the first race, and Francesco Bagnaia winning the second. 2022 saw Quartararo victorious again, while Bagnaia won in 2023, and Jorge Martin took victory in 2024.

Marquez, then, has the opportunity to end the season tied with Doohan on 24 circuits, but – assuming he takes that chance – where could he exceed Doohan’s total and move on to 25?

Well, victories in Indonesia and Portugal this year would mean Marquez has wins at every circuit on the current calendar, so he would need new circuits to arrive to extend his count. Fortunately for him, in this case, new circuits are on the horizon.

The first possibility would be the Autodromo Internacional Ayrton Senna in Goiania, when Brazil makes its return to MotoGP for the first time since 2002 early in 2025 and where Marquez is yet to race.

There are also plans to move the Argentinian Grand Prix to Buenos Aires from 2027, and it is expected that the Hungarian Grand Prix will only last at Balaton for one more year before moving to the Hungaroring in 2027.

Potentially three more circuits coming after this year, then, at which Marquez could win and, in addition to Portimao and Mandalika, extend his tally to what would be 27.

Of course, the thought of the possibility of a race win is much easier to achieve than the win itself, but this year Marquez has once again proven himself capable of entering any race weekend with the chance to win, and his performance in Hungary on 24 August was among his most commanding performances of the season.