Marc Marquez has been named Spain’s best male athlete for 2025, recognising a season that returned him to the top of MotoGP. The country’s Higher Sports Council announced the honour after the factory Ducati rider secured his seventh premier-class title and ninth overall in Grand Prix racing.

His championship campaign produced 11 Grand Prix victories and 14 sprint wins. Marquez sealed the title at the Japanese Grand Prix, ending a six-year wait since his previous world championship in 2019.

The achievement followed a major career setback. Marquez badly broke his right arm in a crash at the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix and missed the rest of that season. Four major operations on the arm followed between 2020 and 2022.

As he rebuilt his fitness, the Honda he was riding became less competitive. Marquez ended his factory HRC agreement a year early and joined Gresini Ducati for 2024. Three race wins there secured him a factory Ducati seat for 2025, where he completed his return by winning another premier-class title.

A new title battle

The award arrives during another demanding campaign. Marquez has overturned a 102-point deficit after surgery for a long-standing shoulder injury and now sits two points behind Jorge Martin, with five rounds remaining. He has won six Grands Prix in 2026, while Martin has one victory.

Marquez is level with Valentino Rossi on titles and could move into second on MotoGP’s all-time list, behind only Giacomo Agostini. He has renewed with Ducati for another two years, with Pedro Acosta set to become his team-mate from 2027. This is Marquez’s second Spanish best-athlete award, following the first in 2014 after his second MotoGP title.