Non-Ducati rider with “a real shot at victory” tipped to battle Marquez brothers

The dominance of Alex Marquez and Marc Marquez could be scuppered by a rider who hasn’t yet won a grand prix in 2025.

The younger Marquez brother, on the year-old Gresini Ducati, came out on top on Saturday in the sprint race at the British MotoGP.

But elder brother and factory Ducati star remains on top of the MotoGP standings with a 21-point buffer to Alex.

But another rider caught the eye at Silverstone ahead of Sunday’s grand prix.

“If we get enough temperature, Marco Bezzecchi can use the hard front,” TNT Sports’ Michael Laverty predicted.

“He could be a real shot at the victory, he could challenge Alex.

“It was a poor start for Marco but he kept coming forwards. The Aprilia looked so good.

“If you go 20 laps around here, the front tyre will play an even bigger part.

“A lot of riders will opt for the medium, even if they don’t want to, to get it up to temperature.

“Over 20 laps, the soft front will not go the distance.”

Aprilia rider Bezzecchi, who hasn’t been able to count on sharing data with Jorge Martin due to his injury this year, was fourth in the sprint after notably passing Pecco Bagnaia.

Marc Marquez mistake at British MotoGP noted

Starting from fourth on the grid, Marc Marquez threatened another sprint win, as has become the norm this year.

“He was super aggressive at the start. At the start of the race he basically abused his front tyre,” Sylvain Guintoli analysed.

“Towards the end, he had no pace. I didn’t think he’d be able to be so aggressive.

“But again, Marc made the moves. He activates his tyre faster than everybody else.

“For a couple of laps, it was really impressive.

“But the mistake - Turn 3, he ran wide. That’s why he crashed [on Friday]. He didn’t want to do that again so he had to pick the bike up.

“That’s where Alex went in front. For Marc, it was a difficult race.

“Such an important race for Alex, the first time he has beaten Marc as the faster rider.”

Laverty added: “Alex seems so good around this track. The composure he showed under pressure from Marc.

“He kept chipping away at lap times, he controlled it. It was a comfortable victory.

“The fast right-handers work so well for him.”

Pole-sitter Fabio Quartararo was competitive until he met the Ducatis on the straights.

“It is the slight weakness of the inline-four Yamaha, it doesn’t have the legs,” Laverty said.

“It was easy pickings for Marc. That’s a shame for Fabio because he’s able to fight, brake and steer. He made aggressive overtakes. Just a shame he’s not able to fight in battles with the Ducatis.”