Marco Bezzecchi has heaped praise on his “special” Aprilia MotoGP team ahead of the start of the 2026 season.

Bezzecchi enters the 2026 season as one of MotoGP’s most interesting riders. He is the only factory rider with his future secured for next season, has won the last two grands prix, and was fastest in the Buriram test that closed the 2026 preseason two weeks ago.

The Thai Grand Prix this weekend comes almost exactly a year on from Bezzecchi’s Aprilia in 2025, but the growth both he and Aprilia have shown in that time has been substantial. Last year, Bezzecchi struggled to break into the top-five in the early part of the season, but by now he’s a consistent podium contender, and the Aprilia RS-GP has become very comparable with the Ducati Desmosedici GP in terms of performance.

Part of the reason for that growth has surely been the atmosphere in the team and the factory, Bezzecchi feeling that he is loved by the personnel within Aprilia.

“They are special, for sure,” Bezzecchi said in the pre-event press conference in Thailand. “For me, a lot. I cannot make another comparison with the other teams because at the end I was only with two teams in MotoGP, but they are special.

“They take care of me and they love me. 

“I feel super-warm inside the box and this makes everything a bit better. I hope to make them feel in the same way.”

Bezzecchi, though, was cautious about his chances of being competitive in Thailand this weekend.

“It’s difficult,” he said.

“First of all we did a good winter testing. Of course, Sepang was super-important because when you start a new season you always have to try many things and in Sepang the items are always a lot so it was important to understand the line to follow. 

“Here [Buriram] we could focus a bit more on preparing a bit the race weekend. Obviously, a test is always a test and a GP is always a GP, so difficult to make a comparison and difficult to see all the potential from everyone. 

“At the end, in testing you never know what the rivals are doing, but hopefully I can start in a good way trying to fight with the top guys.”

Bezzecchi added that Marc Marquez is the favourite for victory by default in Thailand because he enters the opening round as the reigning champion.

“The first race I think the favourite is always the champion,” Bezzecchi said.

“So, Marc [Marquez] clearly is the favourite because last season he was able to be dominant. 

“Of course, I was competitive in the test, also in the race simulation that was not too bad, but I want to keep my feet on the ground, I want to stay focused and try to start the weekend in the best way possible; then of course I would love to be competitive for the podium or for a good race.”