MotoGP, Sportrik Media - Marco Bezzecchi recovered from a crash-filled Saturday to dominate the 2026 Thai MotoGP, becoming the first Aprilia rider to secure three consecutive premier-class grand prix victories.
The Aprilia Racing rider claimed pole position despite suffering three crashes on Saturday, the most costly coming while leading the Sprint. However, he responded emphatically on Sunday, controlling the grand prix from lights to flag with a measured and disciplined performance.
“After yesterday, it was important to reset and bounce back in the race,” Bezzecchi said.
“Yesterday maybe I was asking too much. In the morning I was fast and made a mistake in Turn 3 because I wanted to turn the bike in anyway.”
“I wasn’t thinking enough, and these small mistakes take away a bit of confidence.”
He admitted the qualifying crash was more understandable given the intensity of his push.
“The crash in qualifying I understand better because I was pushing hard.”
“In the Sprint, maybe I was a bit too nervous. I tried to cut too much of the corner. Looking at the images, I thought I touched the white line, but now I think I didn’t. I just carried too much corner speed and that made me crash.”
On Sunday, Bezzecchi avoided those errors and instead focused on tyre management, which proved decisive in a race shaped by heavy degradation and the dramatic retirement of reigning champion Marc Marquez due to a rim failure.
“I knew my pace was good, so if I could start well and stay calm, it was possible to build a small gap at the beginning,” he explained.
“It wasn’t easy because tyre wear was critical. But we managed it well and the whole team did a wonderful job.”
Aprilia placed four riders inside the top five, with only KTM’s Pedro Acosta preventing a complete RS-GP sweep. The leading Ducati was Fabio Di Giannantonio in sixth.
Bezzecchi urged restraint despite the strong start to the campaign.
“For sure the guys did a fantastic job this winter, but it’s only the first race. We must stay calm, focused, and keep working in the best possible way.”
“We know we will struggle at some point. It’s normal. Everyone does. So let’s go race by race and keep this positive mood.”
He now heads to Brazil second in the MotoGP World Championship standings, seven points behind Sprint winner and Thai GP runner-up Acosta, underlining Aprilia’s early momentum in the 2026 title fight.
| POS | FOTO | RIDER / TEAM | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
|
Marco Bezzecchi
Aprilia Racing
|
25 |
|
2
|
|
Pedro Acosta
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
|
20 |
|
3
|
|
Raul Fernandez
Trackhouse MotoGP Team
|
16 |
|
4
|
|
Jorge Martin
Aprilia Racing
|
13 |
|
5
|
|
Ai Ogura
Trackhouse MotoGP Team
|
11 |
|
6
|
|
Fabio Di Giannantonio
Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team
|
10 |
|
7
|
|
Brad Binder
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
|
9 |
|
8
|
|
Marc Marquez
Ducati Lenovo Team
|
9 |
|
9
|
|
Franco Morbidelli
Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team
|
8 |
|
10
|
|
Francesco Bagnaia
Ducati Lenovo Team
|
7 |
| POS | FOTO | CONSTRUCTOR | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
|
Aprilia
|
32 |
|
2
|
|
KTM
|
32 |
|
3
|
|
Ducati
|
19 |
|
4
|
|
Honda
|
9 |
|
5
|
|
Yamaha
|
2 |
Photo Gallery
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