Marco Bezzecchi: Aprilia’s data analysis confirmed what he already knew

Pole position with a blistering lap record and second place in the sprint: the Misano weekend got off to a flying start for Aprilia star Marco Bezzecchi. He led Sunday’s Grand Prix ahead of Marc Marquez, but the Italian only managed 13 corners. For the tenth time this season, he came away empty-handed: due to a crash, a start ban or injury.

After the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello on 31 May, Bezzecchi was leading the World Championship and had a staggering 102-point lead over the defending champion Marc Márquez, who was eighth at the time. But the momentum from the start of the season has fizzled out; ahead of the races at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg this coming weekend, the Italian is now down to third in the World Championship standings and trails leader Marc Márquez by 33 points.

Marco Bezzecchi knows what he did wrong

He has been trying to put the humiliation of his home race behind him over the past few days; during his media session in Austria on Thursday, ‘Bez’ emphasised that he generally approaches a race weekend without any specific expectations. “I always try to start from scratch and give it my best shot; I want to be fast again,” said the Aprilia ace. “I’ve analysed all the data from my mistake and looked in detail at what I did wrong. This confirmed what I already knew. I’m trying to take the positives from the weekend, and there were plenty of them: my pace and consistency in the sprint. Of course I was disappointed with how it ended, but I’ve still got more chances.”

We’re fast, we’re fighting and, unfortunately, we have to take risks.

Marco Bezzecchi

Bezzecchi has had to cope with numerous disappointments this year; were it not for his many crashes, he could be leading the World Championship by a comfortable margin. That doesn’t make things any easier for him: “It would be better not to have any setbacks, but they’re part of the game. We’re fast, we fight hard and, unfortunately, we have to take risks. Obviously, it’s painful, but it’s part of our job. And it doesn’t get any easier with time.”

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Bezzecchi: “The gap isn’t insanely big”

The 27-year-old knows that the World Championship is wide open, that nothing is impossible. “The gap is big, but not ridiculously big,” he said of his 33-point deficit. “With the current format, however, the possibility of making up points or losing more has increased. Marc is a tough rival, as is Jorge Martín – it won’t be easy. My aim at the moment is to regain my consistency. At first I was very consistent, then I made a few mistakes, then I was injured and since then it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster. As soon as I’ve achieved my goal, I’ll do my best to be competitive so that I can fight right to the end.”

He has recovered reasonably well from his crash at Misano over the past four days; only his knee is still causing him pain. “But that’s not down to the crash; it’s because the healing process is still ongoing,” explained Bezzecchi. “It’s getting a bit better every day – I’d expected it to happen more quickly.”