Aprilia: Beating Marc Marquez in MotoGP “most difficult” task we could face

Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola admits beating Marc Marquez and Ducati to this year’s MotoGP crown is the “most difficult task” the manufacturer could face.

Marquez has closed to within just two points of Aprilia title leader Jorge Martin heading into this weekend’s Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika.

Aprilia has never won a premier-class riders’ title, while Marquez is the reigning nine-time world champion and Ducati has taken the last four crowns.

“How difficult is it to beat Marc? The answer is I think it’s the most difficult task we could have,” Rivola said at Mandalika on Thursday.

“I said last year it’s possible to make it. It was a message more for inside the company; to believe we can do it.

“This year we [did] it a few times. If we [can do] it until the end or not it’s too early to say.

“But the fact that we are fighting for that is already a big satisfaction because I think that we are fighting the best possible couple, Marc and Ducati, that we’ve seen in many years.

“So the fact that we are there means we did a great job inside Noale.”

Martin’s team-mate Marco Bezzecchi is third in the standings, but now sits 49 points from the championship lead.

Aprilia lost out to Marquez in both races at Motegi last weekend, but the RS-GP was the benchmark at Mandalika last season, when Bezzecchi took pole and won the Sprint and Raul Fernandez also featured on the rostrum.

Bezzecchi was also favourite for the Grand Prix before clipping Marquez on the opening lap and taking both riders out, injuring the Spaniard.

Martin and Ogura were absent through injury last season, but all four return to Indonesia as race winners in 2026.