Marco Bezzecchi
Marco Bezzecchi took a surprise pole position for Aprilia at the Austrian Grand Prix on Saturday. It’s only his fifth in MotoGP, and his first since India 2023.
Bezzecchi had been on an excellent run of form before the summer break, scoring four podiums in his last six starts. But he didn’t appear to be a contender at the Red Bull Ring after finishing Friday’s running in 18th place.
That forced him to progress through Q1, where teammate Jorge Martin was eliminated, along with satellite Aprilia rider Ai Ogura. Raul Fernandez was ninth on the other Trackhouse bike.
But Bezzecchi edged Gresini’s Alex Marquez by a minuscule 0.016s to snatch pole from nowhere. Aprilia hadn’t set the pace in a qualifying session since Aleix Espargaro at last year’s British Grand Prix.
Valentino Rossi helped Marco Bezzecchi ‘a lot’ at the Austrian Grand Prix
Speaking to TNT Sports in parc ferme immediately after qualifying, Bezzecchi credited Valentino Rossi for his role. Rossi attends MotoGP races sparingly due to his own racing commitments, but he’s present at the Grand Prix of Austria.
In addition to his role as VR46 team boss, Rossi manages Bezzecchi, a graduate of his academy. ‘The Beast’ flew the nest to join Aprilia, but he still received some important advice.
Rossi never won in Spielberg, but it’s worth noting that the event was absent from the calendar from 1998 to 2016. His own riders, Franco Morbidelli and Fabio di Giannantonio, were eighth and 15th, respectively.
“It’s always a surprise when you come from Q1 to Q2,” Bezzecchi said. “That’s very hard nowadays because everyone is super quick.
“To grab the pole position is fantastic. Of course, yesterday we had some problems, but we worked a lot, and Vale also helped me a lot, so big thanks to him and to the team.”
Valentino Rossi’s trackside observations made the difference for Marco Bezzecchi
The world feed coverage showed Rossi taking in the action from trackside, rather than watching in his garage. That, Sylvain Guintoli says, allows him to pick up on ‘little details’.
Guintoli stressed that Rossi is a precious asset for Bezzecchi, who will now go in search of a second victory of 2025. The more he outperforms Martin, the more his stock will rise.
“Aprilia have been struggling a bit this weekend,” said Guintoli. “He’s built his weekend and they’ve found these little improvements. They’ve still got some weaknesses, and obviously having Valentino trackside, he’s going to pick up on little details.
“When you’ve got somebody like that, with the experience, the talent, the history of Valentino, he’s going to be able to give you some little tips to dial things in.”
According to Carlo Pernat, Bezzecchi is the only rider Marc Marquez fears. Even though the Spaniard starts fourth, the #72 knows he’ll likely have to see off the #93 if he’s to win.
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