It seems a bit quiet here over the last few days so I thought it would be fun to do a list of up and coming riders who could move through the classes to challenge Marquez in the future. Obviously right now we have Lorenzo and Rossi as his main competitors but with Rossi getting older, Marquez performing better on tyres that Rossi prefers and Lorenzo off to Ducati for at least the next 2 years on a bike that we don't know if he'll be capable of winning on outside of Austria and Qatar who's the next guys in line to challenge Marquez over the next 5+ years? I thought this would make some interesting discussion.
Currently in the GP
Vinaeles - The most obvious and heralded candidate. He can be fast but I'm not convinced he can consistently beat Marquez even if he has the pace. If it ever comes down to a fight his skills aren't up to the level of guys like Marquez, Lorenzo or Rossi. He struggles to get past Aleix even when he is a few tenths faster. I believe he is going to find it particularly arduous with Marquez, Rossi, Lorenzo(if he can gel with the bike) and Pedrosa(when/if he is riding well) if it comes down to a fight for position. The aliens with their superior battling skills, who will be faster comparatively to Aleix is why I don't see him challenging Marquez seriously over a season. He may be Marquez's Biaggi or Gibernau. Better than the rest for a few years but never a real threat.
Miller - Can be fast and has loads of talent, is hard to evaluate because he is on last years bike without the seemless gearbox. He doesn't have Marquez level talent but I believe if he can learn to stop parking it in the gravel, which admittedly could be from trying to make up too much time on the brakes due to a subpar bike. He could I believe if given a better bike challenge Vinaeles for best of the rest due to his sharper fighting skills. I will admit my views on Miller may be bias due to being an Aussie.
Iannone - He could do anything really, it could go one way or the other. I think he will do better on the Suzuki. It's an easier bike to ride could see him spending less time sliding on his .... I do believe the Suzuki is better than given credit for but can be inconsistent. Iannone will show us the true level of the bike given he is a known substance. I don't see him challenging for a title on the Suzuki but an excellent next two years could see Honda or Yamaha sign him. He could then challenge to be the best of the rest but I don't see him beating Marquez over a season but he could certainly push him better than I believe Vinaeles will be able too if given similar equipment.
Pol, Redding, Crutchlow have all shown they're not up to the level of the aliens - Crutchlow does have a better pace but is on the wrong side of 30 and without a factory ride in the foreseeable future won't be able to challenge for a title.
Moto2
Zarco - He will need to perform extremely well and have Rossi retire or Vinaeles embarrass himself to have any chance of going onto a factory Yamaha. If one happens the other won't. His age will be against him and he hasn't shown the talent to challenge Vinaeles or Marquez. He will likely spend the rest of his GP career on a satellite bike.
Rins - The biggest let down on the list IMO, hasn't shown himself to be worthy of his Suzuki factory ride. I believe Suzuki made an error in their haste to sign him while Honda and Yamaha were smarter to offer him(if they in fact did) satellite rides. If his results in Moto2 are an indicator of what we can expect then he will be struggling to keep his ride let alone challenging the top 5 or Iannone.
Lowes - Can be fast but is inconsistent and crashes far too much as it is now. He is already 26 so I wouldn't expect him to change anytime soon. 2 years on the struggling Aprilia could be a career killer.
Moto3
Binder - Has had a great season but is already 21, at that age the men the aliens were already champs in the GP or multiple time champs in the lower classes. He didn't have a particularly dominant season either, yes he won the championship in Aragon but that is due to others crashing themselves out rather than outright consistently unassailable pace.
I'm sure there's others in moto3 though I believe the guy we will see challenging him isn't in the series yet.
Currently in the GP
Vinaeles - The most obvious and heralded candidate. He can be fast but I'm not convinced he can consistently beat Marquez even if he has the pace. If it ever comes down to a fight his skills aren't up to the level of guys like Marquez, Lorenzo or Rossi. He struggles to get past Aleix even when he is a few tenths faster. I believe he is going to find it particularly arduous with Marquez, Rossi, Lorenzo(if he can gel with the bike) and Pedrosa(when/if he is riding well) if it comes down to a fight for position. The aliens with their superior battling skills, who will be faster comparatively to Aleix is why I don't see him challenging Marquez seriously over a season. He may be Marquez's Biaggi or Gibernau. Better than the rest for a few years but never a real threat.
Miller - Can be fast and has loads of talent, is hard to evaluate because he is on last years bike without the seemless gearbox. He doesn't have Marquez level talent but I believe if he can learn to stop parking it in the gravel, which admittedly could be from trying to make up too much time on the brakes due to a subpar bike. He could I believe if given a better bike challenge Vinaeles for best of the rest due to his sharper fighting skills. I will admit my views on Miller may be bias due to being an Aussie.
Iannone - He could do anything really, it could go one way or the other. I think he will do better on the Suzuki. It's an easier bike to ride could see him spending less time sliding on his .... I do believe the Suzuki is better than given credit for but can be inconsistent. Iannone will show us the true level of the bike given he is a known substance. I don't see him challenging for a title on the Suzuki but an excellent next two years could see Honda or Yamaha sign him. He could then challenge to be the best of the rest but I don't see him beating Marquez over a season but he could certainly push him better than I believe Vinaeles will be able too if given similar equipment.
Pol, Redding, Crutchlow have all shown they're not up to the level of the aliens - Crutchlow does have a better pace but is on the wrong side of 30 and without a factory ride in the foreseeable future won't be able to challenge for a title.
Moto2
Zarco - He will need to perform extremely well and have Rossi retire or Vinaeles embarrass himself to have any chance of going onto a factory Yamaha. If one happens the other won't. His age will be against him and he hasn't shown the talent to challenge Vinaeles or Marquez. He will likely spend the rest of his GP career on a satellite bike.
Rins - The biggest let down on the list IMO, hasn't shown himself to be worthy of his Suzuki factory ride. I believe Suzuki made an error in their haste to sign him while Honda and Yamaha were smarter to offer him(if they in fact did) satellite rides. If his results in Moto2 are an indicator of what we can expect then he will be struggling to keep his ride let alone challenging the top 5 or Iannone.
Lowes - Can be fast but is inconsistent and crashes far too much as it is now. He is already 26 so I wouldn't expect him to change anytime soon. 2 years on the struggling Aprilia could be a career killer.
Moto3
Binder - Has had a great season but is already 21, at that age the men the aliens were already champs in the GP or multiple time champs in the lower classes. He didn't have a particularly dominant season either, yes he won the championship in Aragon but that is due to others crashing themselves out rather than outright consistently unassailable pace.
I'm sure there's others in moto3 though I believe the guy we will see challenging him isn't in the series yet.
