Marco Bezzecchi was left “speechless” as chaos erupted on the COTA MotoGP grid, with many riders fleeing to the pits for his or her spare bikes simply minutes earlier than the race was as a result of start.
Marc Marquez triggered the exodus after deciding the observe was too dry for moist tyres, resulting in confusion as others adopted swimsuit.
Nevertheless, Bezzecchi, beginning thirteenth, opted to remain put – not sure whether or not leaving would lead to a penalty.
“I didn’t know what to do”
“It was unusual! I actually did not know what to do as a result of I used to be on the grid, and I noticed many riders working away and the bikes as properly. And I used to be like… speechless!” he mentioned.
“I did not know what to do as a result of I used to be scared that if I switched off the bike or went away, perhaps I might take a penalty. So I simply waited.
“I used to be ready till I noticed the individuals from Race Course saying that we might go away the grid.
“Then I used to be fairly calm and relaxed. I switched off my bike and went again to the field.”
The unprecedented scenes, with bikes, riders, workforce members, and grid visitors frantically speeding again to the pits, in the end compelled Race Course to delay the beginning on security grounds.
Rivola: “Laws must be revised”
It later emerged that many riders, together with Marquez, had misunderstood the ride-through penalty they’d have acquired for leaving the grid – had the beginning not been delayed.
Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola referred to as for clearer rules to stop related confusion sooner or later.
“As for what occurred firstly, the rules undoubtedly must be revised to be able to forestall conditions of confusion on the race begin, as a result of it didn’t make for a great present, to not point out being complicated for the spectators,” he mentioned.
Marco Bezzecchi, 2025 Americas MotoGP at COTA
Bezzecchi fights again for sixth place
Regardless of dropping a place on the restart and dropping to 14th, Bezzecchi put a troublesome weekend behind him by charging to sixth place on the chequered flag.
“I’m moderately glad with this race,” he mentioned. “It was clearly an especially sophisticated weekend, and our beginning place conditioned us a bit. The second half of the race was particularly optimistic.
“I started to really feel more and more higher, each bodily and when it comes to my feeling with the bike. I used to be overtaking properly and braking precisely. My tempo improved constantly, which allowed me to make up various positions.
“Once I noticed that I used to be lapping at wonderful occasions, I actually began having enjoyable. It’s a pity they shortened the race by one lap as a result of I’d have been in a position to make a play for fifth place.”
Rivola praised Bezzecchi’s combating spirit after a troublesome weekend.
“On a weekend that was a bit sophisticated for Marco, partly as a result of a few of our errors, it was nice to see his velocity within the race.
“Marco confirmed his qualities as a fighter, able to overcoming and rising up decisively.
“In three races, Marco has constantly demonstrated excellent velocity, even when we now have nonetheless not managed to reap our full potential. In any case, we all know that that is all a part of the method.”
Savadori takes first MotoGP level since 2023
It was additionally a memorable race for for Aprilia take a look at rider Lorenzo Savadori, who scored his first MotoGP level since Assen 2023 by ending fifteenth – probably in his closing stand-in look for the injured Jorge Martin.
“I’m glad with the race as a result of we took a giant step ahead,” Savadori mentioned. “It was an especially troublesome weekend, with always altering situations, however we had a great race tempo and, most significantly, the issues we examined gave us a moderately clear route to comply with.
“In any case, these are parts that we’ll nonetheless must examine once more through the upcoming personal assessments in Misano. It was a great race. We battled and we additionally managed to work a bit on velocity and efficiency. It was optimistic to see the Aprilia bikes get near the positions that depend.”
Martin anticipated to return in Qatar
Rivola is holding his fingers crossed that reigning world champion Martin – who attended COTA as a spectator – shall be match to make his long-awaited Aprilia race debut in Qatar.
“It was nice to have Jorge within the storage with us, and that was undoubtedly an additional supply of motivation. Hopefully, he shall be match for Qatar, and we’ll lastly be capable to see him using the Aprilia.”
COTA marked the one-year anniversary of Aprilia’s final GP win, and Ducati’s most up-to-date defeat, with former rider Maverick Vinales.
