Bezzecchi Explains Why He’s “Quite Happy” About Late Practice Crash
Although his Practice crash "could have been avoided", Marco Bezzecchi is "quite happy" about the fall - here's why.
Marc Marquez has a thrilling thought in his mind, and he’s no longer hiding it: he wants his ninth world title, and he’s making it abundantly clear at the first weekend of the 2025 MotoGP season in Thailand.
In his debut outing with the factory Ducati team, the Cervera rider secured pole position, coming within a whisker of breaking the lap record at Buriram.
Marquez needed just a 1’28.782 lap during his first run to put everyone behind him. The #93 then tried to shave off the 0.082s that separated him from beating his teammate Pecco Bagnaia’s record, but yellow flags in his second run prevented him from improving.
🔴 FIRST POLE IN RED FOR @marcmarquez93! 🔴#ThaiGP 🇹🇭 pic.twitter.com/1sISu73Ty8
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) March 1, 2025
It was also a historic qualifying session for the entire Marquez family, with Alex lining up second on the Gresini Racing Ducati. It marks the first time in the MotoGP era that two brothers will start from the front row, with the younger Marquez proving his strong winter form, finishing just +0.146s off pole.
Pecco Bagnaia finished the all-Ducati front row, salvaging his weekend after yesterday’s mishap, when an incorrectly waved yellow flag forced him into Q1. The reigning vice-champion wasted no time in Q1, immediately setting a lap quick enough to avoid going back out and saving a tire.
In Q2, he came agonizingly close to splitting the Marquez brothers, ending up +0.027s behind Alex. Sure, he lost the first head-to-head with Marc, but at least he’ll line up on the same row for both races which wasn’t a given when he started his Saturday a little early in Q1.
The big surprise of qualifying was Jack Miller. After making it through Q1, the Australian cleverly latched onto Bagnaia’s slipstream to grab fourth place, being the top Yamaha in his first qualifying session with the M1. Meanwhile, Fabio Quartararo could only manage tenth, three tenths slower than “Jackass.”
On his MotoGP debut, the reigning Moto2 champion Ai Ogura put his Trackhouse Racing Aprilia in fifth place, just 0.352s off pole. It was a strong statement from the Japanese rookie, outperforming all other Aprilia riders, with his teammate Raul Fernandez eighth and Marco Bezzecchi enduring a tough Saturday morning. After a mechanical issue in FP2, the Italian suffered a crash in Q2 at Turn 3 – the same spot where he fell yesterday – leaving him only ninth.
Rounding out the second row is Franco Morbidelli on the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Ducati. However, the Italian will start only sixth in today’s Sprint, as he has to drop three places on tomorrow’s grid for impeding Bagnaia late in Friday’s afternoon session. Still, “Franky” seems to have regained both his competitiveness and his smile aboard the VR46 GP24.
Seventh on the grid is Pedro Acosta, the only KTM rider to make it into Q2. After posting the third-fastest time on Friday, expectations were higher for the Spaniard, but he still made a significant difference compared to the other RC16s.
Completing the Top 12 are the two Hondas of Joan Mir and Johann Zarco, who secured direct Q2 spots yesterday but struggled to match the pace today. Late in Q2, Mir crashed at Turn 3. Despite the diappointing Q2 performance, having two RC213Vs in the top four rows is already a notable result given Honda’s disastrous 2024 season.
Despite still nursing a painful shoulder from his winter testing injury and subsequent collarbone surgery, Fabio Di Giannantonio came heartbreakingly close to sneaking his Pertamina Enduro VR46 Ducati into Q2. The Roman rider was the first one eliminated in Q1, missing out by just 0.051s.
As mentioned, Acosta’s KTM will be the only one in the top four rows, as his teammate Brad Binder could do no better than 14th. The adaptation process is proving tough for Tech3’s new recruits, Maverick Viñales and Enea Bastianini, who will start 18th and 20th, respectively.
The fifth row is completed by Gresini Racing’s rookie Fermin Aldeguer, while further down in the sixth row is Luca Marini, who has struggled to match his fellow Honda riders so far this weekend.
Lining up alongside him will be Prima Pramac Racing’s second Yamaha, Miguel Oliveira, along with the aforementioned Viñales. The Portuguese rider at least managed to outpace Yamaha’s factory rider Alex Rins, who remains in serious trouble. Rins was only 19th after having all his Friday lap times deleted due to a transponder issue.
The grid is completed by rookie Somkiat Chantra and Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori, who is standing in for the big absentee of the opening round, reigning world champion Jorge Martin, who is sidelined with injury. LCR Honda rookie Chantra will drop to the very back for Sunday’s race, serving a three-place grid penalty for impeding Alex Marquez in Friday’s afternoon session.
