Bezzecchi Blasts to Fourth Straight Victory

Aprilia’s historic streak rolls on in a shortened, sweltering Brazilian GP

In brutally hot, humid conditions, the Brazilian Grand Prix was cut back to 23 laps due to track degradation, despite a huge effort by organisers to repair the circuit after heavy rain created a sinkhole on the main straight yesterday. That made the race shorter than eother the Moto3 or Moto2 races held earlier in the day and caused consternation on the grid, as teams are not allowed to change tyres before the start.

When the lights went out, it was Marco Bezzecchi who nailed the launch to grab the holeshot and lead Fabio Di Giannantonio  and Marc Marquez into Turn 1. Jorge Martin slotted in behind them, while Pedro Acosta rocketed forward into the top five with an excellent start. Further back, Fabio Quartararo fell to ninth early, and Francesco Bagnaia was mired deep in the pack after a poor start.

On lap two, Di Giannantonio ran wide at Turn 1, handing Marquez a chance to move ahead. A lap later Acosta attacked Martin into Turn 12 to take fourth, while Di Giannantonio began prodding for a way past Marquez, only to find the door repeatedly shut. Up front, Bezzecchi was already settling into an ominously fast rhythm at the head of the field.

Martin responded on lap four by repassing Acosta for fourth, looking every bit back to full fitness and confidence. By lap five, Bezzecchi started to stretch it decisively, finding around half a second on Marquez and pushing the gap beyond a second, then out to 1.7 seconds as the chasing group stacked up behind the red Ducati. Di Giannantonio finally lost patience and sent the VR46 Ducati up the inside of Marquez at Turn 4, the move pushed them both wide and opened the door for Martin to slip through. Suddenly it was Aprilia 1 – 2, and Martin had clear air to try to reel in Bezzecchi at the front.

He could, at least initially. On lap seven, Martin was faster than Bezzecchi despite having had to make those passes, trimming the margin slightly and keeping the pressure on. By lap nine the lead gap had dipped again to around 1.8 seconds, and Bezzecchi had some work to do to hang onto a landmark 4th straight win for himself and Aprilia.

Drama unfolded on lap 11 as Bagnaia crashed at Turn 1, compounding a difficult race, and Joan Mir also went down, adding yet another painful non-finish to his CV.

Bezzecchi answered any questions on lap twelve by dropping the fastest lap again, a 1:18.654. Martin countered with his own best lap on lap thirteen to hold the gap near 1.8 seconds, but Bezzecchi looked composed and in control. Further back, Alex Marquez and Acosta traded places in a lively fight for fifth, a scrap that allowed Ai Ogura to close rapidly with pace that looked stronger than both riders ahead.

With only a handful of laps left in the shortened contest, the question became whether Marc Marquez had been saving something for the end. If he was, time was running out. On lap seventeen Marquez returned to the 1:18s and was right on Di Giannantonio’s rear tyre, but Diggia’s drive onto the straight kept him in the lead despite Marquez’s factory Ducati squirming under acceleration with how early he was getting on the gas. On lap nineteen, Marquez forced the issue with a clean move up the inside, taking third and giving himself a narrow window to chase Martin.

It wouldn’t last, though. A small error on lap twenty, running slightly wide through Turn 11, was all Di Giannantonio needed to sweep back through. From there the podium order settled again as the laps ticked away.

At the front, Bezzecchi calmly extended the advantage to around 2.5 seconds, with Martin safely clear of the fight behind. Di Giannantonio did manage to reduce Martin’s margin on the final lap, but not enough to threaten second.

Bezzecchi crossed the line a comfortable winner, sealing four victories in a row and underlining Aprilia’s momentum. Martin made it a huge day for the factory with a strong second place, confirming his returning confidence and fitness, while Di Giannantonio completed the podium, turning the tables on Marc Marquez after yesterday’s sprint race.

Behind them, Ogura took a strong fifth ahead of Alex Marquez in sixth, with Acosta seventh and Fermin Aldeguer eighth on his return to competitive action. Johann Zarco led the Honda charge in ninth, and Raul Fernandez rounded out the top ten. Jack Miller had a forgettable 200th GP start, failing to finish after a lap 4 crash.

Both Aprilias have vaulted Pedro Acosta in the championship battle with Marco Bezzecchi now leading on 56 points. Martin sits second on 45, only 11 points off the lead and suddenly well and truly in the title hunt, not something many would have predicted after his diabolical 2025 season. Acosta remains close in third on 42, but the momentum has clearly swung Noale’s way, and with Bezzecchi now delivering wins and authority week after week, he may well be the favourite for the MotoGP crown for the first time in Aprilia history.

2026 ROUND 2 BRAZIL MOTOGP

2026 MOTOGP CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 2