Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez is again showing an advantage over Francesco Bagnaia at Ducati, despite his fitness issues. At Brno, he got the better of him even with front tyre pressure issues.
Bagnaia recorded his fourth consecutive P3 finish at the Czech Grand Prix, but it was his teammate who showed his supremacy. Luigi Dall’Igna felt Marquez delivered a ‘masterpiece’ at Brno as he now moves to 40 points behind Marco Bezzecchi in the standings.
The Spaniard’s victory demonstrated his class over the field as he beat a charging Ai Ogura in the closing stages. Bagnaia, who will leave Ducati in 2027, had no answer for them, and Hodgson noticed the Italian used an ‘excuse’ for his defeat.
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Neil Hodgson questions Francesco Bagnaia’s ‘excuse’ for losing to Marc Marquez after ‘horrendous’ tyre pressure
Speaking via the Gas It Out podcast, Hodgson noted that Marquez had a ‘horrendous’ feeling from the front tyre at Brno, but he still pushed for victory. Bagnaia felt there was little he could do, prompting the pundit to question his comments.
“We get so much stick on social media, ‘Why do you love Marc Marquez so much? Why don’t you talk about other riders?’
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“Do you know what I’d love to do? I’d love to talk about some more riders. So, where are they? Why aren’t they standing up? Why aren’t they making the difference? They’re not.
“Yet again, you’ve got a perfect example. Marc follows his teammate on the same bike, same tyres throughout the race. And guess what Marc Marquez’s front tyre pressure must have felt like? Horrendous.
“The tyre pressure’s gone up. The contact patch goes smaller. It goes greasier, you’ve no feeling. It’s so easy to drop back and go, ‘Do you know what? Today, I’ll take a second. I’ll take a third.’ But he didn’t.
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“And what happened as soon as he passed his teammate? What were Pecco’s comments straight after? ‘Oh, well, there was nothing I could do.’ That sounds like an excuse. That is an excuse.
“That’s what Marc Marquez felt for 17 laps whilst he was behind his teammate. But as soon as Marc passes him, all of a sudden, he can’t ride. And I’m not criticising Bagnaia. No one can ride that close to somebody else in MotoGP.
“That’s why we’re in this weird phase where we have some boring races when the track temperature is over 50°. But the freak that is Marc Marquez, the talent that is Marc Marquez, the want, the hunger, he is something else.”
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