Marco Bezzecchi
Aprilia enjoyed their most dominant race weekend in MotoGP yet at the Thailand Grand Prix, but team boss Massimo Rivola is adamant that Marc Marquez remains the benchmark for the premier class grid this season.
For the very first time in Aprilia’s MotoGP history, they had four bikes within the top five finishers of a Grand Prix during a thrilling season-opener in Thailand.
Marco Bezzecchi took the ultimate plaudits for seeing the chequered flag first, marking himself as a genuine contender to scupper Marc Marquez’s title defence.
The Spaniard didn’t seem to be in contention for the race win at all yesterday. After crashing out of the Sprint race on Saturday afternoon, Bezzecchi made sure that he didn’t make the same mistake twice and was out of sight by the time the rest of the grid caught their breath after turn one.
The race also marked the end of Ducati’s 88-race podium streak, with Francesco Bagnaia saying that they simply don’t have the fastest bike on the grid anymore because of Aprilia’s advancements over the winter.
However, the same sentiment isn’t shared by Aprilia’s top brass, with the team’s chief, Massimo Rivola, highlighting that Marquez still poses the ever-present threat he has shown throughout his career.
- READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the Aprilia MotoGP team including current riders and management
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Aprilia boss Massimo Rivola still thinks Marc Marquez is ‘the rider to beat’ in MotoGP this year
Bezzecchi led the field from flag to flag during the Thailand Grand Prix, which makes his early exit from the Sprint race all the more painful in terms of the unfolding championship battle.
During his media duties following the conclusion of proceedings in Buriram, Rivola highlighted his disappointment with the lack of points on Saturday, while also noting that his Noale-based team won’t always enjoy such dominance.
“I’m disappointed with yesterday’s race: when you have the potential to go all-in, you have to do it,” he told journalists, via GPOne. “Otherwise, sooner or later, you’ll think about what you’ve lost.
“If that doesn’t happen, it’s because you’re dominating, but we know that won’t be the case because Marc will be the rider to beat.
“And Acosta, who we saw doing some circus tricks again today, will be there in every race, even if the KTM isn’t at the same level as the Italian bikes.
“I think it will be an interesting and challenging championship for everyone.”
Aprilia advised Bezzecchi to keep his cool under the scorching hot sun in Buriram on Sunday, emphasised even more so from his incident on the day before.
While the 27-year-old took these words into account for the longer format race, the same can’t be said for the advice he was given ahead of the Sprint.
- READ MORE: Davide Tardozzi privately delivered a ‘fantastic’ verdict on Aprilia after the Thailand Grand Prix
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Massimo Rivola also revealed his fury with Marco Bezzecchi after he crashed out of the Thailand Sprint
Rivola had warned Bezzecchi about the dangers of overriding his Aprilia prototype in the opening Sprint of the season, which is what he ended up falling foul of as he crashed out of the race on lap two.
The Italian had told his rider to ‘play clever’ against Marquez, and revealed his fury with Bezzecchi following his redemption in the Grand Prix.
He added, “Bezzecchi is a very intelligent guy, and he knows the mistake he made. There’s no need for me to scold him further.
“There will be times when he will be hard on himself and times when I will have to support him. Just like yesterday, even though I wanted to kill him.”
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