MotoGP, Sportrik Media - Marco Bezzecchi smashed the lap record to dominate Practice at the 2026 Thai MotoGP in Buriram for Aprilia Racing, while Francesco Bagnaia endured the first major setback of the new season.
Aprilia converted its strong winter momentum into tangible performance across Friday’s two sessions. After leading FP1 on the updated RS-GP, Bezzecchi carried that pace into the rain-threatened hour-long Practice. In the closing seconds, he delivered a decisive 1m28.526s — a new Buriram lap record — placing himself 0.421s clear of the field.
Bezzecchi headed reigning world champion Marc Marquez on the factory Ducati Lenovo Team machine, with Fabio Di Giannantonio completing the top three for VR46 Racing Team. Aprilia placed three bikes directly into Q2, matched by Ducati, while KTM Factory Racing and Honda HRC secured two spots each in the pole shootout session.
Bagnaia provided the headline shock, finishing 15th and 1.298s off the pace, forcing him into Q1 on Saturday morning. Persistent rain threats throughout the session shifted priorities away from race simulations, with riders focusing almost exclusively on time attacks to guarantee a top-ten berth.
Bezzecchi initially set the benchmark at 1m29.192s before Di Giannantonio edged ahead by one thousandth. The VR46 rider improved again to 1m29.010s with 15 minutes remaining, but track evolution and Bezzecchi’s final run proved decisive. His 1m28.526s lap established a clear margin over Marquez, who followed him into second.
Pedro Acosta led the KTM challenge in fourth with a 1m29.185s, while Jorge Martin completed the top five on the sister Aprilia. Alex Marquez secured sixth for Gresini, and Joan Mir claimed a direct Q2 place in seventh ahead of Brad Binder, Ai Ogura and Johann Zarco. Ogura later slid off at Turn 7 but was unharmed.
Luca Marini missed Q2 by just 0.024s in 11th and will contest Q1 alongside Bagnaia, Maverick Viñales, Fabio Quartararo and Toprak Razgatlioglu. Meanwhile, Michele Pirro is under investigation by FIM stewards for allegedly impeding his Gresini team-mate during a flying lap.
With Aprilia and Ducati evenly matched at the front and championship contender Bagnaia facing early pressure, qualifying at Buriram will be pivotal in defining the competitive trajectory of the 2026 campaign’s opening round.
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