Marco Bezzecchi explained his first lap was the “key moment” that helped continue his strong MotoGP form as he secured another podium finish for Aprilia at Brno.

On Lap 1, the Rimini-born rider crafted an audacious move at Turn 3 on Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo at the start of the race.

The overtake itself resulted in Bezzecchi challenging championship leader Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia, before the Italian took the lead from Lap 2 to Lap 8.

Although Marquez replied and went on to seal another victory, Bezzecchi crossed the line 1.7s behind the Spaniard and secured a third grand prix podium in Noale colours.

“It was a fun race,” Marco Bezzecchi told MotoGP.com’s After the Flag.

“A very good race. The start was good and, compared to yesterday, I studied a bit more the strategy for where to place myself in the first couple of corners.

“I was able to make a fantastic overtake on Fabio [Quartararo] on the outside of turn three – it was really crazy.

“All the risks that I could take during the race, I sum everything and I put it in one corner that was that turn three.

“It was the key moment because, after, I was able to go in the front and, for the front tyre especially, it was crucial because this track was really demanding on the front.”

While he was in front of Marquez for six laps, Bezzecchi anticipated that the factory Ducati rider was preserving tyre wear before making the race winning move.

“I knew Marc [Marquez] was managing, to be honest – I was managing, also, because I didn’t want to push to try to escape knowing that he had something in his pocket.

“So, I tried to just make my pace, warm everything, be ready, and when he overtook me I wanted to fight, but he was something faster than me compared to Assen, that was the last time that I was close.

“This time I was a bit more far, let’s say. The pace was fantastic, I made my best lap in the last one, so very happy to make a weekend like this.”

The 26-year-old has now leapfrogged the VR46 Ducati duo of Franco Morbidelli and Fabio Di Giannantonio, heading into the summer break in fourth place in the championship.

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Marc Marquez has likened his 2025 MotoGP form to the peak performances that earned him titles in 2014 and 2019.

The Spaniard’s dominance in 2014 and 2019 set a high benchmark in MotoGP, and he is showing similar form in 2025 in his debut season with factory Ducati.

Marquez’s grand prix win at Brno makes him the first Ducati rider to win five races in a row, extending his championship lead to 120 points heading into the summer break.

“I’m in one of the best moments of my career; I feel like I did in 2019 or 2014,” the Spaniard explained to Speedweek.

“”I’m driving very well, I’m calm, and I can manage the races. I have to maintain this mentality and focus, and I can only thank my team.

“We mustn’t forget that this is a new team for me. At the same time, that made the first races of the season more interesting for me.

“We had some leeway from the start – when we had the perfect connection, we were able to improve significantly.”

Marc Marquez admits 2025 MotoGP title is his to lose

For the first time in 2025, the 32-year-old has now revealed that the destination of the 2025 MotoGP title is in his hands.

Marquez previously played the underdog at certain races he felt less confident about, but with the gap in the championship, he believes the title is now his to lose.

“For me the only priority is to win the title,” he stated via GPOne.

“I try to be honest, now I can only lose it. There are 10 GPs left, I have to keep the same mentaility and the team the same spirit.

“I don’t care about records, I just want to be champion again.

“We only talk about records when someone is about to break them. I won five races in a row before, but it’s now more difficult because there are also Sprints.

“I will try bring home 37 points every weekend, but sometimes it won’t be possible.”

READ MORE – Marc Marquez dominates to land fifth successive MotoGP victory in Brno

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Marc Marquez made history for Ducati after dominating the Czech MotoGP race in Brno, as he recorded his fifth successive victory in the premier class. 

The eight-time World Champion became the first rider in the Italian manufacturer’s history to record five Grands Prix victories in a row after taking the win by almost two seconds.

Both Factory Ducati riders got a good launch from first and second, as Bagnaia led team-mate Marquez into Turn 1. 

Marquez looked to have the pace as the pair reached the first S-section of the circuit, but Bagnaia was able to respond immediately to regain his lead. 

Behind the Ducatis, Marco Bezzecchi made a fantastic start and was able to hang around the outside of Fabio Quartararo to take third. 

Bezzecchi looked to be the fastest rider on the opening lap, and used his pace to pass Marquez into second. 

The Italian continued with his momentum and, with the help of Bagnaia running wide at the final corner, took the lead going onto the second lap. 

Bagnaia lost a further position to team-mate Marquez, as the world championship leader seemed to find some rhythm going onto the second tour of the circuit. 

As the riders reached the end of the first lap, Alex Marquez looked to make a move on Joan Mir, but dropped the front of his bike. 

The Gresini rider exited the race as he lost further ground in the championship, with Mir also seeing his race end in the gravel after a second collision in as many weekends. 

Pedro Acosta also looked to have the pace, and was able to challenge Bagnaia as the Italian lost a further position and dropped out of the podium. 

Further down the order, Sprint podium finisher Enea Bastianini made a strong start to the race and progressed into the top five after overtaking Quartararo. 

Raul Fernandez followed the Italian through on the French rider, as Quartararo was forced to battle with reigning World Champion Jorge Martin for seventh. 

At the front, Bezzecchi continued to set fastest lap times but was unable to shake the presence of Marquez behind.

Bastianini managed to further his progress by attacking former team-mate Bagnaia, with the Tech3 KTM man moving into fourth position.

However, one lap later, Bastianini exited the race after crashing out at Turn 3, putting an end to any podium chance. 

As the yellow flag came in, Marquez decided to strike after tracking Bezzecchi, with the Spanish rider taking the lead for the first time since the opening corners. 

The Spaniard was able to pull away from the Italian, stretching the gap to over a second as Bezzecchi started to feel the pressure from Acosta in third. 

Acosta tried to force an overtake on the Aprilia rider, but the Spaniard was unable to find a way through before dropping back to preserve his front tyre.

With five laps remaining, Bagnaia decided it was time to close the gap to Acosta for the final podium position, as the Italian looked to make the KTM rider pay for his front tyre pressure. 

Going onto the final lap, the Italian continued to make inroads on the gap to the Spanish rider, but remained too far away throughout the first half of the track. 

As the battle raged behind, Marquez crossed the line to take victory by over 1.753s to become the first Ducati rider to record five successive wins in MotoGP. 

Bezzecchi completed a strong performance by taking second place, as Acosta rounded out the podium finishers. 

Bagnaia narrowly missed out in fourth, as Raul Fernandez was the top independent rider in fifth. 

Quartararo took the flag in sixth as World Champion Jorge Martin completed his comeback race in seventh. 

Fermin Aldeguer made a late charge through the field to take eighth over the line, as former Brno winner Brad Binder took ninth and stand-in rider Pol Espargaro rounded out the top 10. 

Jack Miller was overtaken on the final lap by Espargaro and finished 11th ahead of Luca Marini, who narrowly beat Johann Zarco to the line for 12th. 

Ai Ogura crossed the line in 14th, with Alex Rins scoring the final point in 15th. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio struggled throughout the CzechGP and could only manage 16th, as Miguel Oliveira finished 17th. 

Yamaha wildcard Augusto Fernandez had to serve a long lap penalty after a Sprint collision with Takaaki Nakagami and completed the finishers in 18th. 

Enea Bastianini crashed out of fourth position and joined Mir, who was wiped out by Alex Marquez and the retirements from the race. 

Nakagami did not take part in the race after suffering ligament damage in his crash with Fernandez in the Sprint. 

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Joe Roberts scored his first race victory of the season after prevailing in a tight battle in the Czech Moto2 race. 

Roberts duelled with polesitter Barry Baltus throughout the early stages of the race, but used his strong rhythm to take victory over the Belgian by 1.079s.

Manuel Gonzalez made the best start to the race but was unable to reach Turn 1 in the lead as Marcos Ramirez held the inside line from third on the grid. 

Gonzalez took the lead of the race at Turn 3, as championship rival Aron Canet crashed out of the race from 17th on the grid. 

Ramirez regained the lead of the race at the end of the first lap, as the American Racing rider looked to create a gap ahead of serving his double long lap penalty from the German GP. 

Polesitter Baltus began to show his pace as he took the lead of the race for the first time, as Roberts returned to second place after losing it off the start. 

Ramirez served his first long lap penalty, which allowed Gonzalez to return to the podium, with the Spanish rider rejoining the race between the first two groups of riders.

Ramirez’s second penalty pushed him down to 12th in the standings, likely removing the Spaniard from podium contention. 

At the front, Roberts was pressurising Baltus for the lead of the race, with the American rider taking the advantage on Lap 7. 

Despite battling with each other for the lead, Roberts and Baltus were pulling away from Gonzalez in third as the championship leader appeared to settle into his own rhythm. 

The race began to plateau at the front, with the main fights for coming in the minor points positions, as Jake Dixon and David Alonso commenced battle for 13th. 

Alonso won out against the Brit, and continued to have late race pace to progress further into the top 10, as the Colombian was set to battle with Ramirez on the final lap of the race. 

At the front of the race, Roberts settled into the rhythm to take his first victory of the campaign by just over a second. 

Baltus took second place after starting on pole, while championship leader Gonzalez extended his advantage after completing the podium in third. 

Daniel Holgado accomplished a strong performance by taking fourth, with the Spaniard holding off Celestino Vietti, who finished fifth. 

Izan Guevara ended the race in sixth, ahead of Ramirez who earned seventh despite serving a double long lap penalty. 

Home hero Filip Salac scored an eighth place, as Alonso completed the race in ninth. 

Albert Arenas rounded out the top 10 despite having a grid penalty, while Dixon struggled in the last few laps to 11th. 

Ivan Ortola bested Deniz Oncu in a drag to the line, as the pair finished 12th and 13th respectively. 

Rookie Adrian Huertas ended the CzechGP in 14th as Senna Agius completing the points finishers in 15th.  

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KTM Ajo’s Jose Antonio Rueda showcased a dominant performance to seal victory in the Czech Moto3 race and extend his championship lead.

The Spanish rider led from start to finish to record his seventh race win of the campaign by over three seconds.  

The championship leader got the best start from second and passed polesitter Guido Pini into Turn 1. 

Maximo Quiles also made a good start from the second row of the grid, and used his momentum to pass Pini to move into second place. 

Further down the order, David Munoz had been relegated to the back of the grid due to irresponsible riding in practice, but progressed to 12th by the end of the first lap. 

2020 Czech Moto3 winner Dennis Foggia also had a strong start to the race and made a move on team-mate Quiles to take second. 

Munoz continued his momentum, as he found himself on the back of team-mate Pini, with the Spaniard forcing the Italian wide as he took sixth position. 

The move allowed the top five to open a small gap, with Adrian Fernandez moving into the podium places. 

Quiles set the fastest lap of the race on Lap 8, which forced Piqueras to make a move on Fernandez to maintain his position over the rookie. 

As the riders continued jostling for position behind, Rueda set the fastest lap of the race to extend his gap to almost a second. 

Behind the Spanish rider, Quiles took charge of the chasing group as he passed team-mate Foggia to lead the pack of six riders fighting for second. 

The Italian waited for a lap before responding to his team-mate at Turn 3, as Foggia moved back into second. 

The two Aspar riders continued their duel, but Munoz, Piqueras and Fernandez were all lurking in the background on the final two laps. 

Going onto the final lap of the race, Foggia ran wide which allowed Piqueras to make his move into third. 

Munoz followed his compatriot through into fourth, and then made a move on Piqueras to take third. 

The battles continued through to the final corner, with Quiles looking vulnerable as both Munoz and Piqueras overtook the rookie with just a few corners remaining. 

Ahead of the podium battle, Rueda crossed the line to take victory by 3.471s to record his seventh win of the campaign. 

Quiles drew level with Munoz and Piqueras over the line, as the Spanish fended off the challenge from those behind to take second. 

Munoz battled through the order to complete the podium, with Piqueras and Foggia narrowly missing out in fourth and fifth. 

Fernandez took the flag in sixth as he led Leopard team-mate David Almansa over the line, with Valentin Perrone having a strong finish in eighth. 

Ryusei Yamanaka finished the race in ninth, as polesitter Pini rounded out the top 10. 

Taiyo Furusato completed the race in 11th ahead of Marcos Uriarte in 12th, with Alvaro Carpe a distant 13th behind the second group. 

Marco Morelli crossed the line in 14th to complete his race as a replacement rider for Boe Motorsports, as Jacob Roulstone rounded out the points finishers in 15th.

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Marc Marquez continued his Saturday afternoon dominance in 2025 with another MotoGP Sprint victory as the sport returned to Brno.

The Spaniard dropped behind eventual second place KTM’s Pedro Acosta, avoiding a tyre pressure penalty before taking the win.

Pole man Bagnaia made an impressive start to take the holeshot from Turn 1 and team-mate Marquez sliced his way through at Turn 3.

The factory Ducati duo led the field but Gresini’s Alex Marquez and Honda’s Joan Mir dropped to the back of the field.

KTM rider Acosta rose from the third row of the grid to fourth by the end of Lap 1, before overtaking Yamaha’s Quartararo for third.

Augusto Fernandez and Takaaki Nakagami had a coming together at Turn 3, though nothing malicious from either rider.

Out front the factory Ducati duo rode off to the distance and championship leader Marquez formed a half second advantage.

The exciting battle occurred behind the Bologna machine between Acosta, Quartararo and Tech3 KTM rider Enea Bastianini.

The Italian displayed impressive pace, especially considering his struggles to adapt to the RC16 after moving to the bike at the start of the year. He climbed to fourth place after overtaking Quartararo in the final corner of Lap 4.

However, at the front at the halfway mark, Bagnaia looked behind him to see the distance between himself and riders behind. Bizarrely, he sat back behind Acosta, but lost further ground as Bastianini and Quartararo made surprise overtakes throughout Lap 5.

This led to Marquez to hold a 3s advantage over the field, but the next lap he copied the same move from Bagnaia. The Spaniard dropped to second as Acosta took the lead, likely due to fears of tyre pressure penalties, which could also explain the Ducati riders’ decisions.

Marquez tucked in behind Acosta until his dash indicated he was no longer at risk of a tyre pressure penalty, then the race winning move was made on the penultimate lap.

The Spaniard was accompanied by KTM riders Pedro Acosta and Enea Bastianini, with the latter securing his first podium with the Austrian marque.

Marco Bezzecchi posted fourth for Aprilia to continue his impressive recent form, finishing a second clear of Quartararo.

Raul Fernandez claimed an impressive sixth for Trackhouse after the Spaniard made a last lap move on Bagnaia.

Johann Zarco finished as the lead Honda rider in eighth, closely followed by the KTM duo of Pol Espargaro and Brad Binder.

Jorge Martin posted an 11th place finish on his MotoGP return, who fended off a late challenge from Pramac Yamaha duo Jack Miller and Miguel Oliveira.

Fermin Aldeguer finished down in 14th as Honda rider Luca Marini and Trackhouse’s Ai Ogura successfully defeated Alex Marquez.

Alex Rins and Mir were the final two finishers after VR46 Ducati rider Fabio Di Giannatonio retired at the halfway stage.

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Francesco Bagnaia stunned the field by taking pole position for the Czech MotoGP race at Brno after team-mate Marc Marquez crashed out. 

The Italian progressed through Q1 to seal his first pole of the season after running out of sync with the rest of the field. 

Marc Marquez continued to find his rhythm after topping all three practice sessions and was 0.093s ahead of Fabio Quartararo after the field set their first flying laps. 

Francesco Bagnaia had pulled out of his first run and was out of sync with the rest of the field as the Italian went fastest by two tenths.

The double World Champion was hampered by Alex Marquez on his second run as the rest of the grid filtered back onto the circuit.

Marco Bezzecchi crashed out on his last attempt at pole, which brought out the yellow flag to prevent any representative lap times being set. 

Going onto the final lap, the elder Marquez led team-mate Bagnaia over the line as the younger Marquez trailed behind the pair. 

Bagnaia ran wide, which affected the progress of the Gresini rider behind, but it was his team-mate who was setting the red sectors around the race track.

As the Spanish rider reached the final corner, he lost the front and crashed, putting him out of contention for the pole position and handing Bagnaia his first of the campaign. 

Marquez took second, but was under investigation for crashing under yellow flags on his final attempt. 

Quartararo completed the front row in third after another strong qualifying display from the Frenchman. 

Despite his earlier crash, Bezzecchi ended the session in fourth, ahead of Joan Mir who qualified in a season’s best fifth place.

Raul Fernandez was one of the few riders not to be affected by the yellow flag from Bezzecchi’s crash and took sixth, while Pedro Acosta was affected by the scuffle between Bagnaia and Marquez in seventh. 

The younger Marquez took the flag in eighth ahead of Johann Zarco, who crashed at the end of the session in ninth. 

Jack Miller headed the fourth row of the grid after qualifying 10th, as Enea Bastianini sealed 11th after recovering from appendicitis. 

Reigning World Champion Jorge Martin returned to action and qualified in 12th for Aprilia. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio was disappointed to miss out on a Q2 appearance as he qualified in 13th. 

Pol Espargaro took 14th as he remained a stand-in rider for the injured Maverick Vinales. 

Alex Rins was unable to use his knowledge from testing at the Brno track to advance in the qualifying session as he took the flag in 15th. 

Luca Marini continued to recover from his injuries as he struggled in 16th, ahead of Miguel Oliveira in 17th. 

Rookie Fermin Aldeguer had never visited the Brno circuit and qualified 18th, while 2020 Czech GP winner Brad Binder could only manage 19th. 

Takaaki Nakagami acted as a stand-in rider for Somkiat Chantra and qualified in 20th ahead of Ai Ogura, who was struggling after a heavy crash in Friday practice. 

Yamaha wildcard Augusto Fernandez completed the standings in 21st. 

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Marc Marquez resumed his momentum from Friday’s wet conditions as he topped the final MotoGP practice session on a dry Brno track.

It was the first fully dry session of the weekend, as the riders headed out to set their final laps before qualifying.

The lap times continued to tumble as various riders, including the eight-time World Champion and the 2021 champion Fabio Quartararo, broke the all-time lap record throughout the session. 

Despite the change in conditions, there was no change in Marquez’s relentless form as he topped the final practice by 0.174s. 

Jack Miller continued his strong form from Friday to end the practice session in second. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio completed the top three, four-tenths shy of Marquez’s best time as he prepared for a Q1 appearance. 

Alex Marquez found his rhythm in fourth as stand-in rider Pol Espargaro rounded out the top five. 

Quartararo ended the session in sixth, with Pedro Acosta narrowly trailing the Frenchman in seventh. 

Johann Zarco completed the practice session as the top Honda rider in eighth, as Marco Bezzecchi narrowly bested Joan Mir’s time to round out the top 10.

Miguel Oliveira established a strong time in 11th after a good session for Pramac Yamaha, while reigning World Champion Jorge Martin continued his comeback in 12th.

Raul Fernandez took the flag in 13th ahead of Luca Marini in 14th, with 2020 CzechGP winner Brad Binder struggling in 15th. 

Enea Bastianini returned to 16th after recovering from appendicitis, while Alex Rins completed practice in 17th place.

Francesco Bagnaia continued to struggle and could only manage 18th in the session, with Fermin Aldeguer crossing the line in 19th. 

Takaaki Nakagami took 20th ahead of compatriot Ai Ogura, while Augusto Fernandez completed the standings in 22nd.

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The complex interchangeable conditions sees Marc Marquez lead the field once again after the second MotoGP practice in Brno.

The Spaniard topped the first practice session earlier in the day, and with further downpour throughout the early afternoon, he once again finished on top.

A lap time of 2.03.935s placed him half a second faster than LCR Honda rider Johann Zarco.

Fabio Quartararo finished an impressive third on the Yamaha, but the biggest success came in the Aprilia garage as both Marco Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin secured fourth and fifth place.

Jack Miller booked a Q2 place after finishing sixth for Pramac Yamaha, lapping quicker than Honda’s Joan Mir and Tech3 KTM rider Enea Bastianini.

Gresini’s Alex Marquez crashed with six minutes left on the clock, but dashed back to the pit to get on his spare bike and secured a Q2 place on his final run.

Pedro Acosta rounded off the top ten, pipping Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez and the second Gresini rider of Fermin Aldeguer.

Francesco Bagnaia couldn’t qualify for the second phase of qualifying as he finished in a lonely 13th.

Alex Rins, Brad Binder and Fabio Di Giannantonio occupied 14th through 16th and all three riders were separated by under a tenth of a second.

Pol Espargaro finished in 17th as he stands in for Maverick Vinales, lapping faster than Yamaha duo Augusto Fernandez and Miguel Oliveira.

Ai Ogura claimed 20th for Trackhouse, finishing ahead of the Honda duo of Taakaki Nakagami and Luca Marini.

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Factory Ducati’s Marc Marquez topped the timesheets in the first MotoGP practice session in Brno.

The championship leader noticed a technical error on his Bologna machine after leaving the pits at the start of the session, resulting in him pushing the bike to his pit box.

After spending half of the session sorting out the issue, he completed the fastest time in the session, posting an impressive 1.54.606s on his final run.

Pramac Yamaha rider Jack Miller delivered a strong second place in the interchangeable conditions, sandwiching himself between the factory Ducati duo.

Once again, Gresini rider Alex Marquez was in hot pursuit, lapping only a tenth behind Bagnaia.

Tech3 KTM rider Enea Bastianini and factory rider Pedro Acosta claimed fifth and sixth place, respectively.

Marco Bezzecchi finished the session in seventh despite a crash on his first run earlier in the session.

Luca Marini finished as the lead Honda rider on his return after dealing with injuries, closely followed by Yamaha’s Alex Rins.

Takaaki Nakagami rounded off the top 10, lapping quicker than the Yamaha trio of Fabio Quartararo, Miguel Oliveira and Augusto Fernandez.

Johann Zarco finished down in 14th, ahead of KTM stand in and test rider Pol Espargaro.

Fabio Di Giannantonio posted a lap to place his VR46 Ducati in 16th, whereas Jorge Martin made his return from injuries to finish the session in 17th place.

Raul Fernandez ended the session in 18th for Trackhouse, ahead of Joan Mir, Fermin Aldeguer and Brad Binder who didn’t improve in drier conditions.

Ai Ogura closes out proceedings as he crashed out at the halfway point of the session and thus setting no competitive laptime.

VR46 Ducati rider Franco Morbidelli and Tech3 KTM rider Maverick Vinales weren’t riding due to injuries picked up at last week’s German Grand Prix.

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