Aprilia's “simple rule” for a Jorge Martin, Marco Bezzecchi MotoGP title fight

Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola says he has outlined a “simple rule” that Marco Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin “must respect each other” in a 2026 MotoGP title battle.

The Aprilia duo are split by just one point following Jorge Martin’s victory over Marco Bezzecchi last weekend at the French Grand Prix.

With Aprilia continuing to hold an edge over its rivals, the title battle is fast shaping up to be a two-horse race between its factory duo.

Martin and Bezzecchi fought for titles previously in the lower categories, but Rivola says “there will be no problem” if they continue to “respect each other”.

“The simple rule is that they must respect each other,” he said at Le Mans.

“If they will do that, there will be no problem. The ones who have the most luck will make it.

“If they don’t do that, then I will need to do my job and remind them that they have to respect each other.

“I don’t think we need to get angry; I get angry when there’s no respect between the people.

“This is not the case so far, so I cannot tell you if we can or not!”

"Feet on the ground" despite Aprilia's continued dominance 

Rivola was wary of branding Aprilia as the clear favourite after its 1-2-3 at the French Grand Prix, adding in an interview with Sky Italy: “I don't want to sound like a broken record, but it's still too early.

“Because if we look at the gaps between [Pedro] Acosta and [Fabio] Di Giannantonio, we're really talking about a couple of seconds, so over the course of a race, it's nothing.

“In qualifying, it's not like there were three Aprilias in front, so I'd honestly still be keeping my feet on the ground.

“It's also true that the top three are Aprilias, which suggests that technically we're the benchmark.

“We have two really strong riders, and I have to say that [Ai] Ogura, with 10 laps to go, is probably one of the strongest riders around today in terms of managing used tyres, and he also has great overtaking ability, which is a great trait.

“Is it just us who can lose?

“I think we have two riders who, in addition to being fast, are two great professionals.

“I think they'll respect each other; they know the rules very well, the 'black rules' very well, in just two words: mutual respect.”