– The MotoGP sprint in Misano was practically a carbon copy of the sprint at MotorLand Aragon two weeks earlier. Once again, Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) secured pole position and Marc Marquez (Ducati) was relegated to second place in qualifying.
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As in Aragon, Marquez took the lead after the start by positioning himself next to Bezzecchi in the first corner. In Aragon, Bezzecchi also fell behind Alex Marquez (Gresini-Ducati) in the sprint and finished third.
In Misano, Bezzecchi was second behind Marc Marquez after the first corner and could only follow without launching an attack. Second place was still Bezzecchi’s best sprint result this season.
“The same tire choice as in Aragon, the same strategy as in Aragon,” grins Marquez. “I wanted to lead from the first corner to neutralize the extra advantage of the soft tire in the first laps.”
Bezzecchi and Marquez lined up on the grid with the soft Michelin rear tire, but shortly before the warm-up lap, the harder medium rear tire was fitted on Ducati #93.
After the sprint, Marquez admitted that the change was the right strategy because: “I believe the soft tire was the right approach for the sprint race. But we analyzed at Ducati that both tires were very similar.”
“With both tires, it was possible to finish on the podium in the sprint. But it is true that the feedback, the data, and all these things gave me the idea to use the medium tire.”
“Because I knew that with the soft tire I could be second or third. With the medium tire, second place, third place, or even the win was possible. That gave me the extra boost to fight against Bezzecchi.”
Why would it have been more difficult for Marquez to win with the soft tire? “It wasn’t impossible, but it was riskier,” he answers this question. “With the medium tire, I could control the race better.”
“It depends on the bike and riding style. With the soft tire, we had some problems this morning. I saw that it was a bit risky. You could see in qualifying that some Ducati riders crashed in the same way.”
“That’s why I believe,” says Marquez, “that the medium tire was the better solution for this problem based on my experience within Ducati.” After the winning start, he was able to control Bezzecchi.
Lost again in corner 1: Does it annoy Bezzecchi?
Does it annoy the Italian that he lost out again to Marquez in corner 1? “In Aragon, he was more aggressive, and maybe I was a bit too cautious. However, today I can’t blame myself.”
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“I did everything right. I braked hard and closed the line a bit. He was just a little better than me. Overall, I can’t complain too much about my performance.”
“It’s true that it took me a bit longer than expected to reach a good pace in the sprint. Honestly, I struggled a bit with stability, and the rear wheel put some pressure on the front wheel.”
“In the three practice sessions and overall in the sessions, I felt a bit better,” compares Bezzecchi. “We already had this problem at the last two Grands Prix.”
“When I start the race with a full tank, I have a bit more difficulty in the first three or four laps. Once I finally found confidence, I got faster. Overall, it was a very good day.”
Marquez expects a stronger Bezzecchi in the GP
Marquez and Bezzecchi are also considered favorites for the Grand Prix, as Jorge Martin (Aprilia) and Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46-Ducati) did not have the pace in the sprint to keep up with the two.
“Tomorrow will be a similar race,” says Marquez, but rejects the favorite role: “I believe that Marco with the medium rear tire will be the one to beat.”
“He has this extra advantage and will put pressure on. As we saw today, he never gives up. I expect Marco to be very fast tomorrow. But today we scored twelve points.”
“If we get 20 points tomorrow and he gets 25, we only lose three points. That’s not bad,” Marquez calculates. Bezzecchi says about his chance to win only: “I will try. I will do my best.”
“Ultimately, I work every day to improve step by step. The goal is to get a little better in the feeling for the bike and in all other areas. We will see tomorrow what is possible.”
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With the sprint win, Marquez reduced his championship deficit to Martin to 14 points. Bezzecchi is 22 points behind his Aprilia teammate.
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