Álex Márquez was almost a Petronas team rider but ultimately joined MotoGP with Repsol Honda. This happened during the 2019 season when the rider ended up being vetoed by Yamaha for their satellite team.
In documentary by DAZN, his brother, Marc Márquez, spoke about this situation: ‘It was signed in our motorhome at Brno. In 2019, Álex signed with Petronas. Razlan [Razali], brave and above all honest, valued Álex as a rider without thinking that this could bother the blue side. For whatever reason, when his name reached the Yamaha garage, they vetoed him—even being a satellite team, even though he wasn’t signing with Yamaha but with Petronas’.
While acknowledging his rivalry with Yamaha and Valentino Rossi, Márquez argued that relationships should be kept separate: ‘More than rivalry with Rossi, there’s also rivalry with Yamaha. I’ve always had rivalry with Yamaha, I’ve never talked much with Lin Jarvis. It’s sad when these things happen in the paddock because I believe that as much as it’s family, as much as they’re friends, you have to separate things. I say many friends in the paddock talk about many more technical things than my brother and I do’.