Bezzecchi faces “very difficult” challenge chasing Australia GP win

Aprilia feels it would be “very difficult” for Marco Bezzecchi to win the Australian Grand Prix with a double long lap penalty, despite him showing record-breaking MotoGP pace in practice.

Having been in dominant form all weekend in Indonesia earlier this month, Bezzecchi carried that form into Phillip Island, as he led a 1-2 for the Noale-based marque on Friday afternoon.

With more than 10 minutes remaining in the session, the Italian lapped the circuit in 1m26.580s, smashing his team-mate Jorge Martin’s previous circuit record of 1m27.246s by over seven tenths of a second.

He returned to the track later in the session and went even quicker on his final flying lap, eventually ending up three tenths clear of Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez with a 1m26.492s. His margin over the best non-Aprilia was 0.420s, the same gap he enjoyed over the rest of the field in Mandalika a fortnight ago.

In the sprint race for Indonesia, Bezzecchi recovered from a poor start that left him in the lower regions of the top 10 to take a brilliant win over Gresini’s Fermin Aldeguer on the final lap.

But Aprilia race manager Paolo Borona believes a repeat of that result is unlikely, given the time loss from the two long lap penalties he picked up for crashing into Marc Marquez in the Indonesian Grand Prix.

“It is very difficult, to be very honest. [To] be very realistic, It is very difficult,” he told MotoGP’s official feed when asked if a victory was possible. 

“We tried many times to do the long lap during this morning and during this afternoon. It seems that we lose a minimum of five seconds [serving the penalty]. So, he has to beat the record for all the distance of the long race.

“It is very difficult, but we try our best.”

Bonoro, however, was impressed by Bezzecchi’s performance on Friday, as he hailed him for getting immediately up to speed in practice.

“Unbelievable. He repeated an unbelievable lap,” said Bonora. “He beat the record two times, so it means that he has enough confidence on the bike. 

“To be honest, our bike was also good in the past year. We didn’t achieve many results, but we suffered a little bit less than other tracks here because of the fluent corner.

“And to be honest, Marco here is special. He feels immediately good since the first laps. So, thanks to him, to his energy. 

“He has to put more energy than usual, because during the long race he has to take the two long laps, so he has to beat the record many times also during the long distance.

“I’m joking, but it is important for him to show everybody that he is part of the game and he feels good with the bike. He is in a very good mood during this part of the season.”

Bezzecchi still struggling physically

The opening-lap collision in Indonesia left Marquez with a fracture on his shoulder, while it also affected Bezzecchi’s fitness after he received a big hit by Martin at the previous round in Japan.

The Italian revealed he was still suffering from back pain on Friday, even though it did not affect his lap times in practice.

“I expected a bit better with the pain,” he told the media. “This morning was not bad, but this afternoon I was suffering much more. 

“With the bike, I felt good. Of course, I’m suffering a bit physically. But with the adrenaline, it’s something that can help. Also, when you feel decent with the bike, everything becomes a little bit less painful. 

“Of course, it’s only the first day. The race distance is the toughest one. Also, because it’s on the last day. 

“We have to work well to try to maintain the body in the same condition. Improving is difficult normally when you go on the bike because you stress your body a lot. But at least maintaining the body could be fantastic.”

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– The Autosport.com Team