Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini penalized: how the Austin grid changes

Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini penalized, but only for the Grand Prix of the Americas to be held on Sunday at the Austin circuit when it will be 10 p.m. in Italy. This is the decision of the MotoGP stewards, who decided to set back the two Italian riders by two positions because of the slowdown caused to Marc Marquez during the Q2 of qualifying. The measure, however, does not apply to Saturday’s Sprint Race. The two then relegated to fourth and 11th place, respectively.

The penalty came because, according to the MotoGP commissioners, Bezzecchi and Marini were “riding slowly and on the line.” The Aprilia’s Romagnolo had, moreover, commented on the incident, saying he was forced to slow down because his Honda colleague, who was ahead of him by a few meters, had “practically stopped.” He added that he “did not see” that in turn the Catalan of Ducati was approaching at high speed.

The pole position was and remains Fabio Di Giannantonio’s, whose time (2:00.136) moreover represents the new all-time track record in Austin. This is not the only MotoGP track that bears his signature on the fastest lap ever. In fact, the Roman also won that record in 2025 on the Sachsenring, the historic home of the German Grand Prix. All that is missing is the exclamation point of victory, which has been missing from his trophy cabinet since the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix. The opportunity, after the podium in Goiânia, is propitious.

“I’m delighted, this lap was the most adrenaline-fueled of my life,” Di Giannantonio told ‘Sky Sport’. “I felt good and I was able to push, also thanks to the incredible work the team did between yesterday and today. We made a modification to the bike this morning and I really liked it. It was also very ultile for me to hit pole position. So I dedicate this result just to them, for the crazy work they did.”

MotoGP, GP of the Americas 2026: the new starting grid

1. Fabio Di Giannantonio 2:00.136
Ducati
2. Pedro Acosta 2:00.485
KTM
3. Francesco Bagnaia 2:00.563
Ducati
4. * Marco Bezzecchi 2:00.329
Aprilia
5. Joan Mir 2:00.591
Honda
6. Marc Marquez 2:00.637
Ducati
7. Jorge Martin 2:00.696
Aprilia
8. Alex Marquez 2:00.765
Ducati
9. Fermin Aldeguer 2:01.014
Ducati
10. Ai Ogura 2:01.419
Aprilia
11. * Luca Marini 2:00.891
Honda
12. Enea Bastianini 2:01.477
KTM