Bezzecchi doesn’t look for excuses at Aragon: "I’m ashamed to talk about it

Despite some knee discomfort, Marco Bezzecchi was the fastest rider on the opening day of MotoGP in Aragon—and not only that. The Aprilia standard-bearer also set a new lap record, edging out Marc Marquez, the weekend favorite, by a whisker. But the battle has only just begun.

In the Aragon Pre-Qualifying, Marco Bezzecchi set the fastest time in 1:45.455, ten thousandths of a second quicker than Alex Marquez, with Marc finishing third. There’s great excitement in the Aprilia garage, but “Bez” knows this is only the beginning. Up against the Ducatis (four in the top five), there will be suffering at MotorLand, but this year nothing is impossible for the Noale riders.

Today will be another MotoGP day with an outcome that’s unpredictable—or perhaps obvious... “I wasn’t expecting anything from today,” admitted Marco Bezzecchi at the end of Friday. “But it turned out to be a good day and I’m happy. It’s also true that Marc only did one time attack, he held back a bit, so let’s not get carried away. It’s only Friday and tomorrow he’ll be the man to beat.”

His physical condition isn’t the best—he’ll have to grit his teeth. “The shoulder isn’t giving me trouble, but the knee (left, ed.) is still bothering me a lot... I don’t like to complain. I’m even ashamed to talk about it, but that’s the reality.”

Energy needs to be managed with the key sessions ahead, starting with Saturday qualifying, then the Sprint and Sunday’s race. A situation that ‘Bez’ shares with Marc Marquez, who is also dealing with arm and shoulder issues. “I hope to recover as soon as possible so I can get back to normal. Speaking for myself, since I don’t want to get involved in what’s happening to others, it’s clear that I now have to focus on my own situation.”

Aprilia continues to work on aerodynamics, with the goal of getting its hands on the MotoGP title. A new tail unit has appeared on one of the RS-GPs available to Bezzecchi. Marco prefers to take things day by day and not look too far ahead. “Actually, my goal is different: to try to fight for victory again as soon as possible, when my body allows it. So I’m very focused on myself and I’m not paying much attention to others.”

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