Marco Bezzecchi has expressed surprise at Aprilia’s remarkable MotoGP turnaround after a difficult pre-season, highlighting the unexpected nature of the team’s rapid progress. Now Aprilia’s sole factory rider following Jorge Martin’s injuries, Bezzecchi’s recent performances signal a strong shift in the team’s fortunes in the 2024 championship.
Entering the year new on the RS-GP, Bezzecchi initially ranked twelfth in the world championship after six rounds but surged to victory at Silverstone and then became a frequent podium contender starting from the Dutch Grand Prix at Assen. His momentum continued with a standout weekend at Misano, where he won the Sprint race and secured a narrow second place in the main Grand Prix behind Marc Marquez.
Unexpected rise for Bezzecchi following Martin’s absence
Bezzecchi’s rise has been all the more impressive given that he was the lone Aprilia factory rider after Jorge Martin suffered several injuries. The Italian admitted he had difficulty imagining such strong results early in the season.
“Seeing the start of the season, it was difficult to imagine something like this of course, because Jorge [Martin] was injured,”
Bezzecchi said.
“So, to be honest, no, I couldn’t really imagine this. But when things started to go well, everything changed, fortunately.”
This unexpected surge has positioned Bezzecchi as a genuine title contender, especially given his consistent performances since the mid-season hiatus.
Focused mindset despite close championship battle with Bagnaia
As the championship heads to Japan, Bezzecchi sits just eight points behind his close friend Francesco Bagnaia in the battle for third place overall. Should Bezzecchi surpass Bagnaia, he would secure Aprilia’s best MotoGP championship finish to date, improving on Aleix Espargaro’s fourth place in 2022.
Despite the tight points gap, Bezzecchi refuses to dwell excessively on the standings, choosing instead to concentrate on maintaining consistent results each weekend.
“To be completely honest, I didn’t really look at the standings at the moment. Of course, it’s something that at the end of the weekend, you always take a look to the standings. But my mentality, my main target is to try to continue in this way.
We’ve been competitive through many weekends and I want to keep this momentum going and hopefully then I can still speak about the battle for the third place closer to the end of the year.”
Improving late-race performance after close fight with Marc Marquez
Following a narrow defeat to Marc Marquez at Misano, Bezzecchi highlighted tyre management as a key focus for continued improvement. During the Misano test, he worked specifically on holding performance in the final race stages where the tyres tend to degrade most.
After claiming pole position and winning the Sprint race—benefiting partly from Marquez’s crash—Bezzecchi pushed the reigning champion hard in the Grand Prix, narrowly missing victory by 0.568 seconds.
“It looks like that at the end of the race, the last quarter, when the tyre is quite tired, we still miss something to be able to fight until the end,”
Bezzecchi explained.
“I was good, I was strong, but it wasn’t enough to win. So we have to work on this area and of course continue working on the stability, on the time attack, on everything that we are sometimes suffering.”
He identified the need to better read the bike’s signals regarding tyre wear as an area where he can improve decisively.
“A little bit everywhere. And for sure with the riding, I can make a step and try to be better.
“Normally I’m good managing the tyre, but this is also a different bike compared to what I was using [Ducati] in the previous seasons.
“So, I have to understand very well the signals that the bike is giving me to make me understand that the tyre is going down.
“Then for sure the electronics, it’s a bit of everything. It’s always a combination on the bike.”
At the Misano test, Bezzecchi also experimented with a different chassis setup before finishing third fastest overall behind Pedro Acosta’s KTM and Alex Marquez’s Gresini Ducati, signaling his ongoing search for performance gains.
April’s MotoGP campaign grows increasingly competitive
Aprilia’s resurgence with Marco Bezzecchi at the forefront highlights a significant shift in their competitive capacity. From struggling with multiple injuries and middling results early in the season, the team has transformed into a persistent podium challenger and title contender.
As the season progresses, Bezzecchi’s quest to improve tyre management and bike stability will be crucial in closing the gap on leading riders like Bagnaia and Marquez. Should this momentum continue, Aprilia may achieve its highest MotoGP championship finish, raising expectations for future seasons.
