Marco Bezzecchi isn't hiding from the truth. The Aprilia rider acknowledges that his MotoGP 2026 title hopes are no longer as strong as those of Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez. His honest assessment came ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, a circuit where he hopes to rediscover his best form.
The season began brilliantly for Bezzecchi. He dominated the opening eight races, claiming four victories. However, since then, his charge has dramatically faded. In the last eight races, he failed to score in five of them. He now sits 42 points behind the championship leader, his largest deficit this season.
Asked if the pressure is off him now that he's chasing rather than leading, Bezzecchi replied candidly. "Realistically, at the moment I'm in the fight but not like Martin and Marc," he said. "For sure, they are a lot more inside the fight compared to myself. Obviously, I hope to be able to recover some ground and try to put myself in the mix. But at the moment, they for sure are a little bit more in the fight. So hopefully I can reach them."
Motegi presents a unique challenge for Aprilia. The Italian manufacturer has never scored a podium at the Japanese circuit. Ducati, on the other hand, has been strong there in recent years. Despite this, Bezzecchi insists he isn't focused on bike differences. "Well, obviously in the past it was more a Ducati track, and to be honest I don't really know what to expect," he added. "So I'm not really looking at an Aprilia, a Ducati, a KTM or anything - I'm looking at myself."
He emphasized that his focus is on self-improvement, not on the strengths of other bikes. "I try my best every time I go on the track, so it's the same mentality that I will use here," he stated. "So hopefully we can try to find a way pretty soon on Friday to be competitive already from the practice session, that is super important as you know, and then move on trying to improve day by day. But yeah, we will see only tomorrow."
While he can't compare with other bikes, Bezzecchi noted that the Aprilia's front-end performance is something he notices immediately. "Well, I can't make a comparison because I never tried the other bikes," he admitted. "But where I feel quite confident on my bike is the braking point, the front end of the tyre looks good. So this is something that I immediately notice when I jump on the Aprilia. So I don't know if compared to the other bike it's stronger or not, but for me this part of the riding is good."
With the season still long, Bezzecchi still has a chance to bounce back. However, a tough challenge awaits, especially with Martin and Marquez performing consistently. The Japanese Grand Prix will be his first test to prove he still deserves to be considered a title contender.
Baca Juga
Marco Bezzecchi akui peluang gelar MotoGP 2026 mulai pudar setelah gagal finis di lima dari delapan balapan terakhir. Kini tertinggal 42 poin dari Jorge Martin dan Marc Marquez.
Maverick Vinales kembali ke MotoGP di Jepang tanpa target muluk. Simak cerita lengkapnya tentang cedera, masa depan, dan uji motor KTM 850.
Alex Rins pensiun akhir musim tapi buka peluang comeback MotoGP 2027. Ia kecewa Yamaha tak beri kesempatan uji motor 850cc di Red Bull Ring.
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