Bezzecchi stuns everyone: here’s what lies behind the choice of the medium tyre at Motegi

Bezzecchi’s decision sparked debate and, in hindsight, didn’t pay off much: here’s what the man himself said after the sprint in Motegi.

Tire choice is always a hot topic in MotoGP, and the same is happening at the Japanese Grand Prix. The Motegi track has new asphalt and Michelin brought harder rear tires than usual, a choice driven by the need to guard against potential overheating and excessive wear.

Friday’s free practice didn’t fully clarify which rear to use for the sprint race, but on the grid almost everyone chose the soft. Only two riders went against the grain, Jack Miller and Marco Bezzecchi. Clearly, the Aprilia rider’s choice drew the most discussion, as he’s in the hunt for the 2026 MotoGP world title and could have mirrored his rivals.

The rider from Rimini got off to a good start, moving from fourth to third, behind Marc Marquez and Jorge Martin. The signs looked promising, but it soon became clear that banking on the medium wouldn’t pay off. He lost touch with the leading duo, then Enea Bastianini, Diogo Moreira, and Ai Ogura passed him and he couldn’t respond. Sixth at the sprint race finish, definitely a disappointment.

Interviewed by Sky Sport MotoGP, Bezzecchi explained what led him and Aprilia to fit the medium: "There was a plan; we didn’t choose blindly. On Friday I saw that with the soft I was quick, but not super quick, and I was a bit on the limit with temperatures. After taking a good look at the data last night, and seeing that Marquez had been fast on the medium, we tried working with that tire in FP2 to see what pace I’d have. I was lapping very fast, on the thirteenth lap I did 43.3."

The pace he showed in the final free practice session gave hope to the number 72 of the Aprilia Racing team, but then in the sprint race he couldn’t confirm his competitiveness on the medium: "On the grid we found a temperature that allowed us to try to take a risk, so we went for it, but then I was never able to be fast. I felt worse than this morning in pretty much every phase of riding; we’ll look at everything closely and try to understand. It annoys me, because in the morning I was quick. We salvaged a little something; it’s not enough and we’re not happy, but we still have Sunday."

In Sunday’s long race, riders are expected to rule out using the soft rear, since many suffered a sharp drop-off towards the end of the Sprint. The medium and the hard remain, with the latter potentially even being made mandatory to protect against possible overheating and degradation issues, also meeting the need for greater safety. Updates are expected in the coming hours from Michelin and MotoGP leadership.

-> Follow Corsedimoto on our official Instagram profile