A dream come true to compete with Valentino Rossi, says Marc Marquez

Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez is the reigning world champion

Reigning double world champion Marc Marquez told Newsbeat it is still sometimes difficult for him to believe he is competing against his idol, 6-time MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi.

"I remember when I was five years old watching him on TV fighting for the championship. It's difficult to imagine,” he said.

The Spaniard, who at the young age of 22 is already a world champion twice over – for the past two years running – has beat his Italian idol, dubbed The Doctor, on many an occasion, including several times this year.

This year, however, the youngster has been languishing, by his own standards. He is currently in third in the drivers’ standings, which are led by Rossi himself. The Movistar Yamaha MotoGP rider is at 211, tied with his own teammate, Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo. Marquez himself is a significant 52 points behind the pair at present.

Although Marquez has won 3 races this year, as has Rossi, he has also had 3 retirements and two non-podium finishes, whereas Rossi has been on the podium every race so far.

"At Silverstone it's a really nice circuit but everybody knows about the weather in England. It's raining and cold," he said. "I'm sure it will rain but I hope it won't be on Sunday. If it does rain we will use the wet tyres and do our best."

Marquez is known to like rain, while his competitors Lorenzo and Rossi are not at their best under these conditions.

The British MotoGP will be held at Silverstone this weekend, and Marquez is the reigning champion after having been polesitter at that race, sharing the podium with Lorenzo and Rossi in second and third respectively.