Marco Bezzecchi of Aprilia Racing dominated the season-opening Thailand Grand Prix at Buriram on Sunday, marking a significant start to the 2026 MotoGP World Championship. The Italian rider secured a commanding victory, finishing 5.5 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor, Pedro Acosta of KTM, according to race reports.
The win represents Bezzecchi’s seventh career MotoGP victory and his third consecutive triumph, having similarly won the final two races of the 2025 season. He led every lap of the race after starting from pole position. Trackhouse Racing’s Raul Fernandez initially challenged Bezzecchi, briefly holding second place, but ultimately faded as the race progressed.
The race was not without incident. Reigning champion Marc Marquez experienced issues with tyre wear and rhythm, initially losing positions to Jorge Martin and Acosta before briefly regaining ground with a double overtake on lap 10. However, Acosta ultimately proved to have the stronger pace, passing Marquez for third place. Marquez was forced to retire due to tyre issues.
Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola expressed surprise at the extent of Bezzecchi’s dominance, admitting that the factory’s simulations had predicted a performance improvement but he hadn’t anticipated such a substantial leap in race pace. Rivola told TNT Sports that the simulation data suggested a significant improvement, but he only hoped for half of that prediction to materialize. He noted the accuracy of Aprilia’s computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and wind tunnel testing.
The Thailand Grand Prix also marked the beginning of a new broadcast partnership for MotoGP, with UAE-based streaming service Begin securing rights to showcase every race weekend of the 2026 season. Begin CEO Jonathan Mark stated that adding MotoGP to their portfolio aligns with a strategy of expanding into new sports categories and building a broad live sports offering. Mark emphasized the appeal of motorsport and the opportunity to serve underserved fanbases, particularly younger audiences.
Alongside the broadcast deal, MotoGP has entered a multi-year exclusive agreement with Quint, a travel and events company, to manage hospitality offerings across all 22 Grand Prix races. MotoGP CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta stated the partnership will elevate the fan experience and deepen connections between fans, partners, and the sport. This agreement follows Liberty Media’s recent acquisitions of both Quint and MotoGP, with Liberty now holding an 84% stake in the motorcycle series after a $3.1 billion investment.
Liberty Media’s full-year financial results, released in late February, showed $4.48 billion in revenue for the 2025 fiscal year. Revenue for the motorcycle series increased by 14% year-on-year in 2025, reaching $573 million, with operating income growing by 86% to $54 million, both figures calculated on a pro-forma basis.
