Aprilia Racing finishes a difficult sprint race in Montmeló with three RS-GP machines in the top 10

May 16, 2026 Michael Le Pard News

Published May 16, 2026 by Michael Le Pard

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MARCO BEZZECCHI NINTH, JORGE MARTÍN CRASHES OUT. RAÚL FERNÁNDEZ FOURTH AND AI OGURA EIGHTH
The sprint race on Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya ended with three RS-GP machines finishing in the points. Marco Bezzecchi’s qualifiers were conditioned by a crash halfway through Q2 which kept him from finishing the session and relegated him to the twelfth spot on the grid. The Italian rider then had a good start, making up positions and finishing the sprint race in ninth place.

It was a tumultuous Q1 for Jorge Martín who, despite a crash, still managed to go through to Q2, taking the ninth spot on the grid. After a good start, however, the Spanish rider crashed out during the third lap, eliminating any possibility of finishing the sprint race.

Also worth a mention is the performance of the Trackhouse MotoGP Team riders. Raúl Fernández just missed a spot on the podium after a heated sprint race, finishing fourth, whereas Ai Ogura executed a brilliant comeback ride from eighteenth to eighth place.

The other positive note on Saturday was the win Team Revo-M2’s Matteo Vannucci took home in Race 1 of the Sportbike category in Most with his Aprilia RS 660. The Tuscan rider brought Aprilia Racing back to victory in the Superbike paddock after a 10-year drought since Leon Haslam’s 2015 triumph in Race 2 with the Aprilia RSV4 RF in Qatar. An Aprilia double win was also recorded on that same weekend, with Jordi Torres winning Race 1 astride his Aprilia RSV4 RF.
It was a bit of a complicated day. The crash in Q2 was a shame. Honestly, it was a mistake that I hadn’t expected because it was already the second time-attack and I thought that the front tyre was a bit more prepared. From there, things got a bit complicated. Starting from behind is never simple, but I managed to do a good start and come back all the way to sixth place. Unfortunately, I began to struggle a bit after that and I lost all the positions I had gained.
Firstly, I’d like to thank the team because after four crashes between Friday and Saturday, they never stopped working and they are doing an incredible job. I had two more crashes today – I’m struggling to find the limit on this track. It’s true that I had made a huge step forward between Friday and Saturday, and I expected to be able to battle for the podium. The important thing is to understand that behind every crash there is human error, so we need to continue working as we have up to now.
It was a bit of a complicated day because of the crashes in qualifying that forced us to start from the rear guard. In the early stages of the sprint race, Jorge was demonstrating good potential. It’s a pity about the crash, but these are situations that can occur, especially on a track like this one. Marco was doing well at the beginning but in the second half of the sprint race, he began to have some problems with grip and that compromised the result. From the point of view of the bike, we definitely need to find a little something more, because Trackhouse MotoGP Team demonstrated that the potential for achieving good performance is there, even on a track as complex as this one.

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