Marco Bezecchi secured pole position during qualifying for the MotoGP at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand. Riding an Aprilia Racing RS-GP26 on the dry 2.83-mile (4.55 km) track, Bezeci clocked a 1:28.652 to top 22 riders.
Marc Marquez was the best remaining in his Ducati Lenovo Desmosedici GP26 with a 1:28.687 and Raul Fernandez won the third and final row with a 1:28.876 in his Trackhouse Aprilia RS-GP26.
Row two qualifiers included Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Ducati’s Fabio Di Giannantonio (1:28.918), Bezzecchi’s teammate, Jorge Martin (1:29.001) and Red Bull KTM Factory’s Pedro Acosta (1:29.061).
More, from the MotoGP press release:
How close do you like it? Apria and Ducati go head-to-head in the first battle for pole position as Peco wins from Q1.
Marco Bezecchi (Aprilia Racing) will start the opening round of the 2026 MotoGP season from pole position despite a late crash on lap 12, but Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) is 0.035s clear in Q2. A 1:28.652 for Bezzecchi only played a 1:28.687 for the reigning world champion, as Q1 table-topper Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) got a front-row start in P3 with two Apreas and a Ducati at the front of the grid.
Q1: Peco exits as Fernandez and Morbidelli enter the pole position frame
And so, it was time. In the year The first MotoGP qualifying session of the 2026 campaign was fired alive and after the opening round of flying, it was Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) who led Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) by a healthy 0.3s, thanks to the 2025 Australian GP.28.7 winners.
That meant Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), who was P3 in the opening half of the 15-minute dash, had work to do. And his first attack on the second climb didn’t arrive, and neither did the second attempt, with the double MotoGP world champion protesting with three minutes to go.
Then, 0.001 hours off Fernández’s time, a mistake came at the exit of Turn 8, meaning – tires and fuel load permitting – he would have one more lap to go inside two. In sector 1 the red sector is reset, but the session for Peko is over. The Italian’s sit-out lap meant the #63 Tissot Sprint and Grand Prix would start from P13. Compatriot Morbidelli crashed at Turn 3, which ultimately cost the Italian no place in Q2.
Q2: Bezzecchi vs Marc Marquez 0.4s revealed when covering the top seven
The big question coming into the pole position shootout will be whether Bezecic can stop Buriram’s impressive move. Reigning world champion Marc Marquez will certainly be the main challenger trying to stop him, but it was a brutal opening lap from the #93, with the Aprilia Racing duo sailing into the top two. Bezecchi 1:28.914, teammate Martin by 0.087s.
All this was going to change very quickly though. Marc Marquez improved but it wasn’t enough for P1, as Acosta – a shadow of the 2025 title winner – dropped to a 1:29.063 for P4.
Going down to it was a blessing again. The pre-qualifying favorite improved his time with a bang of 1:28.652, with Fernandez stretching his legs to jump up to P3 to make it Aprilia 1-2-3 in Q2. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) were currently on the second row behind Acosta, meaning Marc Marquez had a mini mount to climb from provisional P7.
That got worse as Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) moved into P6 as we braced for a fantastic Q2 for the final four minutes.
In true Marc Marquez style, the shovel was out, and he was digging deep when it mattered most. Three red sectors were crushed before the 99-time grand prix winner lost a slim margin in sector 4, meaning P2 for the Ducati star. He closed the gap to Bezcicci by 0.035, and with Di Giannantonio improving to P4, Martin now moved up to P5 on the factory RS-GP.
Roll 12, push to increase the advantage, then grab Bezechi. The front end didn’t cry when #72 hit the deck in the final corner, but in the end, it didn’t matter. No more big moves were made in the quest for pole position in Thailand, so the much-coveted P1 grid slot was the Italian and Bezzecchi’s Round 1 – but only just.
Your grid for the 1st round
Pole goes to base, but Marc Marquez is right there in P2 after a late Q2 lap. Di Giannantonio takes the second row ahead of Martin – who has the first 10th place in qualifying with an Aprilia – and Acosta – Fernández makes it two Aprilias on the front row, making for a nice pair of short mornings for the #25.
To qualify for the leader KTM star is P6, Alex Marquez was forced to get a disappointing P7 in Q2. Eighth and ninth – middle and outside of the third row – went to Ogura and Morbidelli, with Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Johan Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR) in P10, P11 and P12 respectively.
Coming up: Sprint Hour
0.8s split the top 12 in a blistering Q2 and now it’s time to prepare for the Tissot Sprint. 15:00 local time. You know the result. And if you don’t, get ready for one hell of a ride. In the year Let’s go racing in 2026, shall we?
Post MotoGP: Bezzecchi on pole position in Thailand It appeared at first Roadracing World Magazine | Motorcycle riding, racing and technology news.
 track, Bezzecchi turned a 1:28.652 to top the field of 22 riders. Marc Marquez was the best of the rest with a 1:28.687 on his Ducati Lenovo Desmosedici GP26, and Raul Fernandez claimed the third and final spot on the front row with a 1:28.876 on his Trackhouse Aprilia RS-GP26. Row-two qualifiers included Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Ducati’s Fabio Di Giannantonio (1:28.918), Bezzecchi's teammate, Jorge Martin (1:29.001) and Red Bull KTM Factory's Pedro Acosta (1:29.061). More, from a press release issued by MotoGP: How close do you like it? Aprilia and Ducati go head-to-head in the first pole position battle of the season as Pecco fails to progress from Q1. Despite a late crash at Turn 12, Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) will start the opening round of the 2026 MotoGP season from){kind=link}