MotoGP: Bez, Jannick and Kimi, soccer and us

The San Marino and Rimini Riviera Grand Prix is a special race—not like Monza for F1, but for those born around here, it’s probably even more so. Today the Garbino is blowing, the lethal Libeccio wind; it’s 35 degrees and there’s a palpable tension in the air.

I’ve known Marco Bezzecchi since the CIV days, when he was racing in Moto3 with Mahindra Peugeot and I was following the RMU VR46 Riders Academy talents as a press officer. His open smile hasn’t changed, although getting close to him for a quick chat today is definitely more difficult.

A friend helps me out—he runs a beach and on Saturdays and Sundays transforms into a data engineer in the Italian championship and Supermoto. That’s how it is in motorcycling: everyone knows everyone. Bez tells me he’s been messaging a lot with Jannik Sinner: "I’m sorry he didn’t go to New York. This summer we both learned that the body, sometimes, presents the bill when you push it to the limit."

Kimi, Jannik, and Bez are today three of the most beloved figures in Italian sport. And, in a way, they’ve even ended up overshadowing the big names of football, which is in crisis partly due to a lack of credible personalities. Three very normal guys, simple, children of ordinary people who managed to pass on their passion for the sports they loved. And above all, aware of the good fortune of being able to live off their passions.

Marco Bezzecchi is in Viserba waiting for Sunday’s GP, where he’ll try to win to keep chasing the world title. He’s second in the standings, 31 points behind his Aprilia Racing teammate, Jorge Martín. After an extraordinary first part of the season, with four wins and two second places in the first seven races, Bez ran into a string of misfortunes. After the Sachsenring he went under the knife in Sassuolo, where Professor Porcellini fixed a complex fracture of his left collarbone, with resulting shoulder and knee issues. Now he’s back, and in front of his home crowd he wants to give it a go.

Football is in deep crisis. Kimi, Jannik, and Bez have changed the face of Italian sport: what do you have in common? "Probably our way of being: three very normal guys. Simple. Who focus on work and are willing to make sacrifices. Three guys who chase their passions and try to give everything. But who, famous or not, remain very normal. And then there are many other Italian athletes who are doing well. I think of track and field, or the fantastic results at the last Winter Olympics. I was lucky enough to meet Federica Brignone: she’s fantastic."

"How can I, as an Italian, not root for Ferrari? It’s our history, our pride. And it has two drivers I like a lot. But Kimi is a true friend and I care about him. We’ve known each other for quite a while, through karts and Valentino Rossi. Over the years this relationship has grown. He’s super nice, very humble, truly a good guy. At Mugello, for MotoGP, I also met his mom Veronica: what a beautiful family. In short, if Andrea Kimi wins the world championship, I’ll be over the moon."

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