The quirky reason Alex Marquez is wary of winning Silverstone MotoGP race

Winning MotoGP races is not something most riders try to avoid, although Alex Marquez has joked he would rather avoid being the 13th different race winner at Silverstone.

Marquez comes into the Silverstone weekend after a tough first half of the 2026 MotoGP season that saw him sidelined for large parts through injury, but also competitive at several races, most notably Jerez where he won.

The Gresini Racing rider was also arguably the fastest rider at Silverstone last year, winning the Sprint, meaning he arrives in Britain this weekend with a target on his back.

“[Has] Alex Marquez won here? I think he’s the main contender,” said Francesco Bagnaia when it was put to him on Thursday that a new Silverstone winner this weekend would be a 12th different winner in 12 editions.

But that 12th in 12 races would also be a 13th in total at Silverstone, which rejoined the grand prix calendar in 2010, in its current stint as the British Grand Prix venue.

It’s this number that Alex Marquez takes a lighthearted issue with when considering his own chances this weekend.

“I will try,” Marquez said about his victory potential at Silverstone.

“But they said to me in the MotoGP interview that I will be the 13th different winner.

“I don't like that number.”

He added: “Somebody needs to repeat. I win Saturday. 

“12 plus 1. That will be nice. But, you know, we'll see. We start the weekend in a normal, relaxed mode and then, if we make the work in a good way, for sure we'll have some options.”

Marquez also explained why he thinks Silverstone has been so diverse with its winners in the past decade or so, noting that last season’s weekend, and the change from Saturday from Sunday, encapsulated it.

“I think here it's quite crazy because last year, for example, on the Sprint on Saturday, I was the fastest one and having a lot of margin, you know, to win on Sunday also,” he said.

“But then from Saturday to Sunday, the weather changed a lot, so windy and everything, and [...] our laps, I think, on Sunday were like nearly two seconds slower than Saturday, and that way, you know, changed a lot. 

“So, you know, I think that explains how and why every year here is different.”

Marquez, though, accepts that the Silverstone layout is one that suits his style, even if, on paper, it also suits the Aprilia, which won last year with Marco Bezzecchi.

“We'll try to make our best weekend,” he said.

“But here it's true that, normally on the paper, the Aprilias will be quite fast for the characteristics of the circuit. It's really fast. 

“You know, you need to have a lot of speed, a lot of stability, and they have. 

“But also it's a track that I switch a lot to my riding style. 

“So we'll try our best and then, after the sprint race, we'll see if we have chances for the Sunday.”