Aprilia Racing's Marco Bezzecchi celebrates on the podium after winning the Italian MotoGP. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Marco Bezzecchi beat teammate Jorge ​Martin to win the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday as manufacturer Aprilia ruined rival Ducati’s centenary celebrations on ‌home turf in Mugello after Francesco Bagnaia briefly led the MotoGP race.

Ducati’s Bagnaia, ​a three-time winner in Mugello from 2022 to 2024, led the race until ⁠there were 10 laps left, when Bezzecchi made his move before Spaniard Martin also moved past the Italian to drop him down to third.

There was no stopping Bezzecchi after he moved into the lead as the ‌Italian rider fulfilled a childhood dream by taking the chequered flag over three seconds ahead of Martin for his first win at the famous circuit.

“It was a dream ‌I wanted to achieve since I was a kid,” Bezzecchi said after the Aprilia team ‌threw him into the air during wild celebrations in the paddock.

“Thank you from the ⁠bottom of my heart. Today we went there; we had fun. Thank you, all guys; you are fantastic,” he added in a message to the fans who streamed onto the circuit.

Bezzecchi now leads Martin by 17 points in ​the championship after seven rounds.

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Meanwhile, Bagnaia’s late ‌heroics denied Aprilia a podium lockout when Trackhouse rider Ai Ogura briefly took third on the final lap before the Italian took the place back just before the finish line.

APRILIA’S BATTLE FOR LEAD WITH BAGNAIA

As the red lights went out, it was the two factory ‌Aprilia riders who battled for the lead while the two Ducatis slotted in behind them ​after sprint winner Raul Fernandez went very wide on turn one and fell from second to 17th.

It was pole-sitter Bezzecchi who led the pack ⁠of riders while Bagnaia moved up four places to slot in behind his Italian compatriot on home turf, with Martin and Marc Marquez chasing them down in third and fourth, respectively.

Bezzecchi could not ‌hold on to the lead for long, however, as Bagnaia used the Aprilia’s slipstream to surge ahead on the start-finish straight. Marquez, making his return from double surgery on his foot and shoulder, was involved in a tense battle for fourth with KTM’s Pedro Acosta as the two Spaniards constantly swapped positions.

Up front, Bezzecchi stayed on Bagnaia’s rear wheel, and he finally made his move with 10 laps left, using the slipstream again to take the lead.

That was all the Aprilia rider ‌needed as he peeled away and built a commanding lead while Bagnaia turned his attention to Martin closing in ​behind him.

The inevitable overtake came on lap 16 when Martin pounced to move up to second, with Bagnaia aware the Aprilia was faster as he was overtaken ⁠on the inside of turn one.

Ogura finished less than a tenth of a second behind Bagnaia while VR46 Racing’s ​Fabio Di Giannantonio rounded out the top five. Acosta finished sixth ahead of Marquez in seventh.

Published on May 31, 2026