Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez snubbed in 'most talented' MotoGP verdict
Valentino Rossi counts Marquez among his biggest career rivals (Apex Agency)
16:45, 03 Sep
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Connor Andrews is Formula 1 and MotoGP writer for GPblog and various outlets. Having worked in motorsport for 15 years for leading companies, he has interviewed the sports biggest names and attended multiple Grands Prix.
Valentino Rossi or Marc Marquez? Neither, according to one of their rivals.
The pair have defined MotoGP ever since Marquez graduated to the premier class in 2013, and they continue to do so even after Rossi’s 2021 retirement.
Thankfully for MotoGP, Marquez arrived just in time too, as Casey Stoner left the sport in 2012 as one of Rossi’s biggest challengers up to that point.
A premier-class champion with Honda and Ducati, the Australian was possibly Rossi’s toughest ever opponent and one who would disappear into the distance once he had the race lead.
Stoner was capable of ending a race by the first corner (Photo: Race Pictures)
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Stoner and Rossi famously staged one of the greatest MotoGP fights seen at Laguna Seca in 2008, where they traded leathers in remarkable scenes.
That race summed up their relationship, with Rossi having to use his guile and unrivalled braking skills to beat the exceptionally fast No.27.
Neither Rossi nor Marquez gets Pirro's vote
But for one of his compatriots, Michele Pirro, Stoner is ahead of anyone when it comes to pure talent.
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The 40-year-old has held various test roles in MotoGP since joining the sport full-time in 2012, and put forward the case for Stoner.
Speaking on the podcast of former Rossi Academy prospect Andrea Migno, he said: “If you ask any rider in the paddock who the most talented rider is, the answer is always the same: Stoner.
“When I arrived at Ducati, everyone, from the technicians to the other people working on the project, kept repeating: only Stoner rides this bike, only Stoner wins with this bike. This mentality also existed within the company.
Stoner could adapt to any bike in any situation (Photo: Race Pictures)
“He didn't want electronic controls, not even an anti-wheelie system. For him, riding meant doing everything himself.
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“At first, you thought it was something you'd seen on PlayStation. Then you analysed the data and discovered that he really did it that way. And he did it with incredible ease. It's not that [Jorge] Lorenzo or I didn't try to imitate him, but for us, it was unnatural.”
Pirro worked directly alongside Stoner from 2016 to 2018 as they both worked to improve a Ducati bike that would end up dominating MotoGP.
However, Pirro says Stoner was there more for his own enjoyment, and perhaps to prove a point.
Ducati were fielding former rival and five-time champion Jorge Lorenzo at the time, and even he couldn’t deal with how Stoner would push a bike and its tyres to their absolute limit.
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Stoner did things 'no other rider could have done'
Pirro recalled: “He wasn't particularly interested in doing the test rider job with a broader perspective.
“He was mainly working for himself, and the bike he set up with his maps was practically the only one he could ride. Lorenzo also tried those solutions and came back right away. I only did one lap.
“In Sepang, I tried a lap with his map and immediately said, ‘Wait a minute.’ He had managed to destroy a set of Michelin tyres on the out lap. It was incredible.
Rossi and Lorenzo would find themselves stunned by Stoner (Photo: Race Pictures)
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“With the Bridgestones, which had a very hard rear casing, he could really push the rear tyre. When the first Michelins arrived, he managed to overheat one on the out lap. He would enter the track with very few electronic controls and make the tyre spin a lot. Probably not even the Michelin technicians were prepared for something like that.
“He was still incredibly fast. I saw him do things that, in my opinion, no other rider could have done. He would arrive at practice, complete two or three laps at an incredible pace, and then it would become more difficult for him to continue.”
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