2023-10-14 11:16:33
A week ago, Marco Bezzecchi ended up in hospital with a broken right collarbone following a training crash on the ranch. Six days following the operation, he finished third in the sprint at the Mandalika International Street Circuit from 9th place on the grid to reach the podium in third place.
The Mooney VR46 Racing Team had to postpone the obligatory press session because Marco’s shoulder had to be cooled extensively following the exertion. Afterwards, the third-place finisher reported in detail regarding his sprint performance: “I’m happy, it was a nice day. I certainly didn’t expect to come here and do a Saturday like this. But then I saw that I was strong. I didn’t know if I might do it physically, but once I was there I had to give it my all to get the most out of it. Overtaking Maverick Viñales at the end was nice, I’m happy.”
When asked regarding his condition ahead of Sunday’s 27-lap race, “Bez” also openly admitted: “Looking forward to tomorrow, I’m feeling bad, I don’t know exactly how I’m going to do it tomorrow. It will definitely be difficult. I’m doing pretty well in terms of endurance, but I’m in pain. This is normal, the muscles are still hard, the swelling is still there following an operation and blood has accumulated. We’ll see, the long race will definitely be approached a little differently. I still have a few cards up my sleeve for tomorrow, but it won’t be easy.”
On Friday, the 24-year-old Italian fell asleep in the box following the second training session, having only arrived in Lombok at 7:50 a.m. His crew mightn’t resist having fun and posted a photo with the caption: “Jetlag 1, Bez 0”. Bezzecchi himself said with a smile: “I was really exhausted yesterday. I only slept for fifteen minutes in the box – but it was a good nap that felt like an hour and a half. That was wonderful, I didn’t notice anything regarding the photo.”
Regarding his friend Pecco Bagnaia, who lost the championship lead to Jorge Martin following the Q1 exit and the meager eighth place in the sprint, Bez said: “He’s always very fast, that’s why you always expect him to be fast. But it happens to everyone that they have a slightly more difficult day – including him as a world champion. But I think he is very fast. The problem, however, is that if you find yourself in the middle of the field, you can be a little faster, but you can only catch up if you really make the difference. Between P12 and P5 it really is a jungle. Pecco probably isn’t in as good a position as usual, so he’s having a little more trouble. But I think he will be there tomorrow.”
Martin, on the other hand, is in the flow and secured his fourth sprint victory in a row. Bezzecchi knows: “It’s a very positive moment for him. It would be nice to know exactly what the problem is. Because then I would do it too. But it’s just like this: If you have a good moment, are focused and competitive, and can sustain that moment for as long as possible, then you are strong. He is now on a run with very good results. It depends entirely on him how much time passes before he makes a slip. If that happens, it will be the same once more – in the sense that he is already strong, but not as unbeatable. He’s certainly the strongest at the moment and has been unbeatable a few times now.”
Result MotoGP Sprint, Mandalika (10/14):
1. Martin, Ducati, 13 Rdn in 19:49,711 min
2. Marini, Ducati, + 1.131 sec
3. Bezzecchi, Ducati, + 2,081
4. Viñales, Aprilia, +2,720
5. Quartararo, Yamaha, + 3,121
6. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, +4,203
7. Bastianini, Ducati, +4,981
8. Bagnaia, Ducati, +5,465
9. Miller, KTM, + 7,852
10. Oliveira, Aprilia, +8,942
11. Nakagami, Honda, +12,034
12. Zarco, Ducati, +14,015
13. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 14,823
14. Raúl Fernández, Aprilia, +15,699
15. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +23,331
16. Mir, Honda, +24,894
17. Pol Espargaro, KTM, +27,169
18. Kidneys, Honda, +28,980
19. Binder, KTM, + 43,090
– Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, 6 laps back
– Marc Márquez, Honda, did not finish first lap
World Championship standings following 29 of 40 races:
1. Martin, 328 Punkte. 2. Bagnaia 321. 3. Bezzecchi 272. 4. Binder 201. 5. Aleix Espargaró 171. 6. Zarco 162. 7. Viñales 145. 8. Marini 144. 9. Miller 126. 10. Quartararo 116. 11. Alex Márquez 108. 12. Morbidelli 77. 13. Oliveira 69. 14. Augusto Fernández 67. 15. Marc Márquez 64. 16. Di Giannantonio 57. 17. Rins 47. 18. Nakagami 45. 19. Raúl Fernández 36. 20. Pedrosa 32 21. Bastianini 28. 22. Mir 20. 23. Pol Espargaró 12. 24. Savadori 9. 25. Folger 9. 26. Bradl 8. 27. Pirro 5. 28. Petrucci 5. 29. Crutchlow 3.
Constructors’ World Championship:
1. Ducati, 502 points (world champion). 2. KTM 273. 3. Aprilia 246. 4. Honda 142. 5. Yamaha 136.
Team World Cup:
1. Prima Pramac Racing, 490 Punkte. 2. Mooney VR46 Racing 416. 3. Ducati Lenovo Team 359. 4. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 327. 5. Aprilia Racing 316. 6. Monster Energy Yamaha 193. 7. Gresini Racing 165. 8. CryptoDATA RNF 109. 9. LCR Honda 98. 10. GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3, 88. 10. Repsol Honda 84.
1697282509
#days #surgery #place
