Aprilia have just unveiled the MotoGP bike they hope will end Ducati’s reign. Marco Bezecic could be the biggest threat to world champion Marc Marquez.
Bezechichi He was arguably the standout rider on the grid after last year’s summer break, a run that included two Grand Prix wins and three Sprint victories.
But Marquez He was ruled out of the last four rounds after suffering a shoulder injury in a collision with Bezeci at the Indonesian GP. The lack of a more difficult opponent artificially inflated Aprilia’s confidence.
Thoughts on the Aprilia 2026 design?
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George Martin arrived Aprilia He was number one on the bike last year but was unable to compete with him as injuries ruined his season. Bezeci has therefore emerged as the team leader and the man to beat the Ducati dynasty.
Massimo Rivola says Marco Bezecchi ‘must learn’ to manage expectations.
Massimo Rivola Aprilia admits that true competitiveness is unknown because Marquez is at his peak when he is away from injury.
2025 was their best season since returning to the premier class as a factory team, but that success brings with it the burden of expectation.
Rivola says Bezeci must learn to bear the extra pressure if he wants to become a champion. He now has a top-three finish in every class but enters 2025 with big ambitions.
Complete the sentence: Aprilia will win the Grand Prix in 2026.
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“On Route 93, I really don’t know,” he said. GPON When asked if Aprilia can beat Ducati. “Last year we won the final race, but Mark was not on the right track.
“We don’t know what other manufacturers have done during the winter, the benchmark remains – we will do everything we can.
We must respect everyone but fear no one, so the famous phrase I said when (Alex) Espargaro won in Argentina is the same: work and believe, remembering that we can be a lion to everyone, that’s all we have to do.
“(Expectations are) high, but you used the key word expectations. Because expectations often kill us. I’m excited to see how Marco manages the expectations on him.”
“We don’t know what others have done this summer, but we know we’ve done very well. I think Marco has to learn to take the final step, to manage expectations – that’s one of the keys.”
Massimo Rivola on the moment Marco Bezecchi realized he could achieve ‘great things’ with Aprilia
In the year The biggest clash between Marquez and Bezecchi in 2025 was at Misano, with both riders winning the race.
The Ducati rider went down in the sprint after battling Bezecic, but was beaten on Sunday. The final gap between the two riders was just 0.6 seconds.
After that race, Bezecic apologized to Rivola and the CEO realized they were on the road to greatness.
He said: “He apologized for finishing second to Mark at Misano… Well, that shows we can do great things together.
Aprilia opted for a ‘scary’ design. This year, although there will be further evolution before the first tests in Malaysia.
