APRILIA FLAGS SEPANG AND QATAR AS RISKS, WHILE ALEX MARQUEZ EXPECTS STRONG TRACKS

Jorge Martin heads the MotoGP standings by just two points over Marc Marquez, with five rounds left, after Aprilia’s historic top-four finish at Mandalika. Marco Bezzecchi is third, 46 points behind, as the title fight between Aprilia and Ducati enters its decisive stretch. With 195 points still available, Alex Marquez says the championship is “wide open.”

Mandalika had been expected to suit Aprilia, and the RS-GPs showed strong pace. But the team missed a chance to build a bigger advantage: Bezzecchi and Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez collided in the Sprint, while tyre-pressure trouble and a mistake dropped Martin from the lead to fourth. Marc Marquez won the Sprint and took over the championship lead. Bezzecchi recovered to win Sunday’s Grand Prix, with Fernandez second; Martin and Marc Marquez each scored 22 points across the weekend.

Aprilia technical director Fabiano Sterlacchini was cautious about predicting how the remaining circuits will suit each manufacturer. “It’s difficult to say,” he said, pointing to the team’s unexpectedly strong performance at Spielberg despite anticipating a difficult weekend. The final venues are Phillip Island, Sepang, Lusail, Portimao and Valencia.

Sterlacchini identified Sepang and Qatar as the tracks that give Aprilia most concern. “We are working to be as prepared as possible in Sepang,” he said, adding that Martin did not race at Qatar last year. “These two are the two tracks where we are a bit more concerned.” He believes Aprilia should be competitive at the other venues, while describing Valencia as “neutral” because it runs anti-clockwise and Marquez is “super competitive” on left-hand tracks.

Alex Marquez, however, expects Aprilia to have an edge over his brother at Australia, Qatar and Portugal. “The title race is going to be wide open, although there are circuits coming up – particularly Australia, Qatar and Portimao – where the Aprilia can perform very well. Marc will have to pull off his usual tricks,” he said. Phillip Island’s left-hand corners may suit Marc, but its layout should also favour the RS-GP’s cornering speed. Marc has won the Australian Grand Prix five times across the classes, including four MotoGP victories, and won there in 2024 on a year-old Ducati. He missed the 2025 race through injury.

Last year’s results underline the challenge. At Lusail, Aprilia’s best Grand Prix result was Bezzecchi’s ninth, while Marc Marquez took pole and won both races. At Sepang, no Aprilia made qualifying’s second phase; Bezzecchi’s seventh in the Sprint and Ai Ogura’s 10th in the Grand Prix were the team’s best results. Ducati won both Malaysian races, with Francesco Bagnaia taking the Sprint and Alex Marquez the Grand Prix.

The coming rounds also bring uncertainty for the title contenders. Martin missed much of last season through injury and has little or no RS-GP experience at Phillip Island, Sepang and Portimao. He was badly hurt during his Qatar comeback and retired from another return at the Valencia finale. Marc Marquez also missed the final four rounds of 2025 after his Mandalika injury. Fernandez and Bezzecchi won three of those last four races as Aprilia emerged as a serious Ducati rival; Alex Marquez won at Sepang to deny the team a clean sweep.

Aprilia’s strength in numbers could help it challenge Marquez, Sterlacchini said, noting that putting several bikes ahead of the Ducati rider at Mandalika helped recover points. The team’s riders remain free to race for now, but that may not last: “This isn’t the time for orders; we’ll give ourselves one-two races, then we’ll have to draw a line and start handing them out; that’s part of this sport,” he told Sky.