Marco Bezzecchi
Neil Hodgson believes Marco Bezzecchi has a ‘rare opportunity’ to beat Marc Marquez at COTA.
This weekend is the third round of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship, and the paddock has arrived at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) for the United States Grand Prix.
In the opening two races of the season in Thailand and Brazil, Marco Bezzecchi won both Grands Prix, whilst Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez won the Sprint Races.
Bezzecchi leads the 2026 MotoGP championship ahead of the United States Grand Prix, and has the chance to stamp his authority over the title fight this weekend at COTA.
In the past, Marquez has been the ‘King of COTA’ as he has claimed seven MotoGP Grand Prix victories at the circuit, all during his time in the Repsol Honda garage, and they came between 2013 and 2021.
However, Bezzecchi has the perfect opportunity to beat Marquez whilst he is down and extend his winning streak from four Grand Prix wins in a row to five.
Marco Bezzecchi leads the standings after two races in 2026 🏆 What is his ceiling in MotoGP?
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Neil Hodgson says Marco Bezzecchi will ‘smell blood’ at COTA
Ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Neil Hodgson discussed how this weekend will be a ‘massive round’ for the championship on Gas It Out.
The 2003 World Superbike Champion says that Bezzecchi has a ‘rare opportunity’ to beat Marquez at his ‘favourite track’ and could swing the momentum of the championship in his favour.
Hodgson said, “This is a massive round in the championship, and you have the chance to beat the King of COTA at his favourite track. It is like he is a boxer, you have just managed to catch him and you’ve seen his knees just move a little bit, and you think, ‘I have a chance of beating him here.’
“Bezzecchi has to, he has to let the brake off, and be aggressive, they smell blood and they have to attack. These are your rare opportunities, where if you want to take it to him across the season, you have to try and beat him here.”
Who is going to win the Americas Grand Prix?
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Differing opinions over Marc Marquez in the 2026 season
After the opening two Grands Prix of the season, there have been different opinions about Marquez and whether he will be able to defend the title and go back-to-back in 2026.
After the Brazilian Grand Prix, Carlo Pernat suggested that the MotoGP title fight will be ‘different than expected’ if Marquez does not beat Bezzecchi this weekend at the United States Grand Prix.
Pernat said “If he does not win there, and let’s Bezzecchi beat him, then we will have to start thinking that the championship will be different than expected.”
Whereas, Max Biaggi has stated that Marquez and Ducati are still the favourites for the title, and he expects Marquez is dealing with unexpected difficulties.
Biaggi said, “Ducati and Marquez are the champions and therefore the favourites… Bezzecchi is succeeding now, but we need to understand if Marc is having difficulties that we’re not aware of.”
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