Pecco Bagnaia in crisis: Marco Bezzecchi sees miracle within reach

With a Pecco Bagnaia increasingly in deep crisis, Marco Bezzecchi can dream. The triumph in the Sprint Race at Phillip Island, combined with the discouraging penultimate place of the Ducati centaur, propels the Romagna dell’Aprilia rider just 8 points behind third place in the overall MotoGP standings. And now overtaking appears as close at hand as ever, an aspect that even the man himself stressed ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, which will kick off when it is 5 a.m. in Italy on Sunday morning.

After all, Bezzecchi will still start from an extremely promising front row, despite having to serve two Long Lap Penalties for the incident with Marc Marquez in Indonesia. Yet the Rimini native is convinced not only that he can complete the overtaking move on Bagnaia, but also that he can repeat Saturday’s victory. “I would love to do the miracle – he admitted to ‘Sky Sport’ -clearly, just by calling it that, you can tell it doesn’t happen too often. Anyway, I will try to do my best, I have tried several times the Long Lap Penalty since I arrived in Phillip Island. And I have to say that it looks easy, but the many potholes and ups and downs still present many pitfalls”.

The data remains of an Aprilia that has grown by leaps and bounds since the start of the season, just as Bagnaia was not solving his problems with the Ducati GP25. “In these months we have improved so much. The guys have worked really hard, and I&#8217ve done it too. In this way I was able to become a little bit more competitive than the time before every time I got back on the bike. Then to be able to ride well here at Phillip Island is really a treat – revealed Bezzecchi -. To be able to do these corners with the right level of confidence is a great feeling”.

D’on the other hand, the Sprint Race also presented some pitfalls. “The race was beautiful, starting with the start – told Bezzecchi -Raul Fernandez was very fast, I didn&#8217t want to stress the tires right away, and then I made a mistake in turn 10. I went very wide, and I thought I was going to do the damage again. Luckily I was able to slow down without losing too much of the ideal line, so I was able to catch him”.