"I Had to Risk It" – Bezzecchi's Comment After Marquez Collision
The Aprilia Racing polesitter crashed out of a fierce victory battle with the World Championship leader, dealing a catastrophic blow to his fading title hopes at Lusail.
Marco Bezzecchi’s hopes of converting a brilliant pole position into a Qatar MotoGP Sprint victory evaporated in a shower of sparks on Saturday, following a dramatic Lap 4 collision with championship leader Marc Marquez.
The Sprint was already a chaotic affair, completely red-flagged on the opening lap following a massive crash involving reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia. Bezzecchi had initially held the lead, but at the restart, a costly wheelie compromised his acceleration, allowing Marquez to snatch the advantage heading into Turn 1.
The decisive moment arrived on the fourth lap of the ten-lap shootout. Marquez appeared to run slightly wide at Turn 1, and Bezzecchi ruthlessly attempted to capitalize by cutting inside. The two heavyweights clashed over the exact same piece of asphalt. The violent impact instantly deployed Marquez’s airbag, but the Ducati Lenovo rider miraculously stayed upright, while Bezzecchi was sent sliding into the gravel trap.
"Not the sprint I wanted, of course, after a very good qualifying, a very good weekend," a frustrated Bezzecchi told TNT Sports. "At the end, I tried to keep my line, and the contact happened, so I couldn't really do anything to avoid it. The one that crashed was me, but it’s like this. So we move forward, and we try to bounce back tomorrow."
The FIM Stewards swiftly investigated the heart-stopping incident but officially ruled it a racing incident, declaring no further action was necessary.
"Then we started a very good battle. My pace was good to try to fight for the win," the Italian added, defending his aggressive approach. "I had to risk it, I had to do everything to try to make a good result. Unfortunately, it was not like this, so we will try again tomorrow."
With Bezzecchi eliminated from the fight, Marquez charged forward to take the Sprint victory. Behind him, Fabio Di Giannantonio snatched second place on the final lap, demoting Bezzecchi's Aprilia teammate, Jorge Martin, to third.
The DNF is an absolute disaster for Bezzecchi's championship ambitions. He now sits 79 points behind Marquez and faces a strict do-or-die scenario in Sunday's Grand Prix. The Italian must significantly close the gap to keep his title hopes mathematically alive, with only 74 maximum points remaining across the final two rounds in Portimao and Valencia.
Credit Photo : MotoGP
