Bezzecchi (4th) is confident: “The World Championship isn’t over yet”

World Championship third-placed rider Marco Bezzecchi finished Saturday at Phillip Island as the top Aprilia rider. ‘Bez’ was satisfied with his sprint and reflected on the crazy World Championship season so far.

Thomas Kuttruf

MotoGP

24.10.2026 - 09:38

This article is an automatically generated English version. The Original Article was published in German.

Marco Bezzecchi schaffte es im Sprint auf Rang 4
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Marco Bezzecchi

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The term ‘up-and-down performance’ sums it up well when it comes to Sprint Saturday at Phillip Island and Marco Bezzecchi. After a fabulous start to the Australian Grand Prix – Bezzecchi was fastest in qualifying and close to the lap record – the middle day of the event saw him experience significant ups and downs, falling back and then fighting his way back to the front.

In the wet FP2 session, the rider from Rimini performed flawlessly to finish fourth, with no obvious problems on wet tyres. However, due to a combination of bad luck (Bezzecchi was held up) and a lack of confidence on the less wet track, Q2 saw the Aprilia factory rider finish only in 9th place.

Unsurprisingly, ‘Bez’ struggled from there. And yet the number 72 managed a remarkable comeback, as evidenced by his third-fastest lap of the race. Bezzecchi, who had dropped back to 12th place on lap 1, managed to climb back up the order with a flawless ride. Even third place seemed within reach – and with it the prospect of extra World Championship points – but in the final race, Bezzecchi was unable to get past his compatriot Fabio Di Giannantonio. Remarkably, the best Aprilia rider crossed the line just 1.074 seconds behind winner Marquez.

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Marco Bezzecchi

Bezzecchi’s comments after the short race were a mixed bag. “I can’t say exactly why I didn’t manage a better time in qualifying. When it was completely dry, things went very well, as they did when it was very wet, but in between, something was missing. I can’t change it now. Otherwise, though, I have to be satisfied with the sprint; it was fun overtaking, catching up and keeping an eye on the lead – only winning would have been even more fun.”

Bezzecchi, who only learnt of his team-mate’s injuries during the press conference, was visibly shocked: “Shit! That’s very sad and a real shame for Jorge, who did a brilliant job. It’s also a blow for the whole Aprilia project. I hope I get to see Jorge before he leaves. I’m sending him my best wishes and hope he recovers as quickly as possible.”

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