Marco Bezzecchi admits he made “a bad mistake” on the first lap of the Argentina MotoGP race which took him out of points contention.

Bezzecchi and Aprilia were expecting to be strong around a circuit where the Italian won two years ago, but the potential never materialised throughout the weekend.

The Rimini native struggled in qualifying and as a result was attempting to make progress down into the first corner in Sunday’s race, but an overly ambitious move saw him make contact with the rear tyre of Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo.

While the Frenchman was able to continue running, albeit finishing down in 14th, Bezzecchi’s race ended in the gravel after the incident, which he has since taken full responsibility for.

“It was my mistake – I braked too late,” Bezzecchi said to Crash.net. “I managed to miss Franco Morbidelli, but unfortunately, I hit Fabio Quartararo’s rear tyre.

“So a bad mistake by me. I’d like to take this opportunity to apologise to Fabio. I’ve already apologised to his team.”

“We had the pace to battle for the good positions,” Bezzecchi continued.

“We still need to improve in qualifying, and that will be my goal for the next GP.

“I also felt good on the bike in the warm-up session, and I expected to be able to ride a good race, but the mistake on the first corner changed my plans.”

Fabio Quartararo: ‘not much to say’ about Marco Bezzecchi crash

Quartararo admitted the incident was “unfortunate” but that his Yamaha machinery did not have the pace to keep up with the front runners regardless of the incident.

“There’s not much to say,” commented Quartararo. “The touch between Bezzecchi and me in the first corner was unfortunate. I went wide, I was in last place, and also our pace was not super good all weekend.”

“I could have maybe been a few positions higher, because starting the race like this, you pretty much keep your position. But it was a really tough weekend overall. Let’s see if we can do a bit better at the next GP.”

Bezzecchi was not penalised for the incident by the stewards after the race.

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Marco Bezzecchi says his Aprilia machinery “doesn’t always accept” how he rides during qualifying following the opening MotoGP round in Thailand.

Bezzecchi started his career with the Noale-based factory by qualifying eighth and finishing inside the top six in the main race on Sunday.

The Italian said he “expected” his season to start in this manner but stressed he is still aiming for better results from qualifying.

“At the end, it’s not better, not worse,” he said via Crash.net.

“It’s almost how I expected to begin the season. To be honest, I wanted to do better in qualifying.

“Still in time attack I’m not the best. I didn’t try many time attacks in testing because of the items to try, so we didn’t concentrate on that and I think I’m paying a bit for this lack of time attacks in testing.

“It’s the point where I have to improve the most. I think when I have to ride even more by instinct like I’m used to doing in the past years, the bike doesn’t always accept how I ride in time attack.

“So, this is why I make some small mistakes.”

Marco Bezzecchi: ‘Tough to deal with Aprilia front tyre temperatures’

Speaking about his debut grand prix aboard the RS-GP, the Rimini native suggested the front tyre overheating prevented him from making any progress after the race start.

“The start was ok, fortunately, and from that point, it was completely another story,” he said of his grand prix.

“It was tough anyway because being behind some bikes puts everything really hot, especially the front tyre that from the beginning was over-temp.

“I had the alarms on the dash through all the race. Also when I passed Jack [Miller], I had free space in front, I spent four laps trying to remove the alarms from the dash.

“But anyway, some positive points. I wanted to get in front of Jack and Raul [Fernandez] earlier, but I wasn’t fast enough to immediately overtake.”

Aprilia has struggled in recent years with the heat generated by the bike in the flyaway rounds, but Bezzecchi said it was better than what past Aprilia riders had said.

Speaking about the heat of the bike, Bezzecchi stated: “Really, really good, to be honest,”

“It was hot, of course, it’s b******* if I say not. But it was nothing crazy compared to the other bikes.

“I expected hearing the comments from Aleix [Espargaro] and Maverick [Vinales] in the last years much, much worse.

“Or I’m very fit or the bike is very fresh. One of the two. I think the second!”

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Marco Bezzecchi admitted he had found the adaptation process with Aprilia “difficult” throughout the MotoGP test in Sepang.

The Italian completed his first test in 2025 aboard his new RS-GP machinery after he made the move over from VR46 Ducati.

Bezzecchi finished ninth on the final day after completing a time attack, posting his best time of 1.57.328s.

Despite having limited time testing the Aprilia, Bezzecchi’s feedback is crucial, especially given the absence of Jorge Martin and Raul Fernandez, who suffered injuries from crashing out on Day 1.

The 26-year-old revealed that while he found the adaptation process tricky, he was unable to extract the maximum performance from the Italian marque.

“Today I actually did a real time attack. I’m happy about the performance,” he said to Crash.net.

“I think I didn’t put the bike at the limit, but not because of the bike, more because of myself. Still I need to understand better and understand where is the limit of the bike.

“I think Sava [Lorenzo Savadori, Aprilia test rider] actually rides in a better way the Aprilia,” Bezzecchi said.

“His style was born on the Aprilia, so for sure he knows better how to ride it. I think I’m still adapting myself; in braking I’m quite strong, so I try to maximise this strong point that I have in my riding.

“But still sometimes, with the Aprilia, I’m still trying to do what I was doing before.

“So, of course, I still need to adapt a bit, but I’m working on it and in some corners I was able to ride how I like to ride.”

“At the end, I’m quite satisfied. But it’s also difficult, to be honest, to get the rhythm when you try many things.

Bezzecchi compares Aprilia bikes from Barcelona to Sepang test

The Rimini-born star drew comparisons between the Aprilia bikes from the 2024 end-of-season test in Barcelona and the bike brought to Sepang.

He felt as though the Aprilia at Sepang was an improvement, but it’s down to him to decide whether certain parts are discarded, despite the refinement.

“We started with the Barcelona bike and then moved on to the new one, so as to understand everything. In the end I liked the latter better and afterwards we continued to work on that one,” he said to GPOne.

“In the end I liked the latter better and afterwards we continued to work on that one. At the moment we are a little behind because there are so many things to try.

“Still, the bike gives me good feelings, especially at the front, knowing that there are some things I have to adapt to.

“I think it’s [the Aprilia Sepang bike] a small step forward, but it’s still early to say more. Personally I felt good, in fact all the things I tried were better. However, I need time to evaluate and understand what to keep or not.

He added: “This bike turns much more than last year’s [GP23 Ducati] bike. For sure, we have to solve some problems on the rear; it moves a lot, I felt it already at Montmelo.

“However, I think it’s a mix between tires and electronics, although I don’t have the experience to take stock of that.”

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The 2025 MotoGP season marks a campaign of change at Aprilia with two new riders bringing a new level of expectation to the team. 

Reigning world champion Jorge Martin leads the Italian manufacturer in one of 2025’s most dramatic rider changes and will be joined by Marco Bezzecchi in arguably Aprilia’s best ever MotoGP lineup.

Both Martin and Bezzecchi come to the team with a desire to develop the RS-GP bike following a lacklustre 2024 for the Noale factory, as its traditionally ‘strong’ showings at low grip circuits failed to materialise last season, aside from Aleix Espargaro’s chance victory in the Barcelona Sprint.

Aprilia’s only real highlight of 2024 was Maverick Vinales’ dominant weekend in Austin, which may raise some concerns for both Martin and Bezzecchi as they attempt to battle the might of Ducati after leaving the manufacturer ahead of the new season.

While Martin says he doesn’t regret signing for the Italian outfit despite its recent struggles, he will be a heavy underdog in the fight to retain his world title due to the power of Ducati’s super team of Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez, and it is likely he will need a period of adaptation to the new machinery.

“Bringing the Aprilia to fight for the championship won’t be easy, so the ambition for the new season isn’t that,” admitted Martin to the TengoUnPlan podcast.

“The opportunity could present itself maybe as early as 2026 but, for now, I just have to try to do my best.”

On the other side of the garage, Bezzecchi joins Aprilia with something to prove after his struggles at VR46 last campaign.

Bezzecchi had been touted for a potential ride in the factory Ducati team after a strong showing in the 2023 season, however his failure to adapt to the GP23 halted the Italian’s progress as he was only able to score one podium last year.

The downturn in form for the Italian means question marks have been raised as to whether his 2023 performance was a one-off, which means Bezzecchi will have doubters to prove wrong ahead of the new season.

A new technical direction for Aprilia in 2025?

Another big change for Aprilia going into the new season is the introduction of technical director Fabiano Sterlacchini.

Sterlacchini joins the team following his exit from KTM and will hope to build on the legacy left by Romano Albesiano, who departed for Honda at the end of 2024.

Following his first outing with the team at the Barcelona test, Sterlacchini said that the approach of both Martin and Bezzecchi was positive and that the bike was responding well to the riders’ feedback.

“It’s going pretty well,” Sterlacchini told TG Regione Marche in December, “The initial approach of both riders, both Martin and Bezzecchi, was pretty positive.

“They showed some very good characteristics of the bike.

“Obviously there will be some aspects to work on, but dealing with these two riders will give us the yardstick of where we are and the aspects where we need to work.

“They both come from a very fast bike and Jorge in particular is the reigning world champion.”

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On Thursday afternoon the factory Aprilia team became the second outfit to showcase its 2025 MotoGP livery.

The Noale factory squad is geared up for the upcoming season, with a brand-new lineup to boot.

The 2024 MotoGP world champion Jorge Martin joins after switching from Ducati, a move that sparked major discussions within the paddock, especially after he missed out on a factory Ducati seat to Marc Marquez.

Martin made history by becoming the first rider to win the MotoGP championship for an independent team. For the upcoming season, he will take the #1 plate, which features his trademark #89 inside.

VR46 Academy graduate Marco Bezzecchi will accompany the Spaniard for the upcoming season, with the Italian riding a factory bike for the first time.

The factory Aprilia’s 2024 rider line-up has seen three-time race winner Aleix Espargaro retire from full-time racing, with the Spaniard moving on to become a test rider for Honda.

His teammate Maverick Vinales announced his departure from the team and will join KTM Tech3 working beside Enea Bastianini.

In 2024, Aprilia was the sole manufacturer to halt Ducati from winning every Grand Prix. Vinales completed a remarkable victory at the Circuit of the Americas after falling to 11th on the first lap.

However, the Italian marque wasn’t able to keep up its form from the early part of the season, finishing third in the Constructors’ Championship and fourth in the Teams’ Standings.

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VR46 Ducati’s Marco Bezzecchi edged out Pramac’s Jorge Martin to lead Thailand’s opening MotoGP practice session.

The Italian posted the fastest lap time of 1.30.492s in the earlier phases of the practice session, with Martin only 0.038s adrift aboard his superior GP24 machine.

The factory Ducati rider of Francesco Bagnaia closed out the top three, a surprise result given the Italian’s usual nature of growing into the weekend rather than being competitive from the offset.

MotoGP arrived in Thailand for its 18th round of the 2024 season, with two race weekends in Asia remaining before the annual season finale in Valencia.

Thailand’s weather conditions changed significantly compared to previous weeks’ Friday outings. Bright blue skies led every rider to opt for the hard tyre in some capacity in preparation for the long race on Sunday.

Due to its heavy braking zones and long straights, the Chang International Circuit is notoriously demanding on the tyres. All riders opted for the hard rear, but the front tyres left riders choosing something different.

Ducati finished the opening session in the top six positions, and the Gresini Ducati duo of Marc and Alex Marquez finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Enea Bastianini formulated a late lap time to snatch second ahead of the returning rookie Pedro Acosta and factory KTM rider Jack Miller.

Takaaki Nakagami delivered a strong finish result of ninth place for LCR Honda with Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo closing out the top ten.

Brad Binder finished a distant 11th despite being only a couple of tenths off from his stablemates, as Franco Morbidelli and Fabio Di Giannantonio followed in the final classification.

Luca Maini finished in a competitive 14th spot for Repsol Honda with Maverick Vinales behind as the lead Aprilia rider for the session.

Honda’s incumbent championship leader, Johann Zarco, occupied 16th, ahead of Trackhouse Racing’s Raul Fernandez.

Joan Mir’s torrid form continued as the Spaniard secured 18th, ahead of old team-mate Alex Rins and GasGas rider Augusto Fernandez.

The Italian marque Aprilia occupied the final two positions in the classification as Aleix Espargaro and Lorenzo Savadori were no match to the rest of the field.

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