Bezzecchi beats Marc Marquez to pole in record-breaking Aragon Q2

Here's the thing: Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) turned up bruised and simply brilliant, dropping not one, but two blistering 1:44 laps to snatch pole position at the Michelin Grand Prix of Aragon. The Italian locked in an all-time lap record of 1:44.962, leaving reigning World Champion Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) 0.089s behind in a stunning Q2 showdown at MotorLand. Rounding out the front row is Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP), setting the stage nicely for the upcoming gold medal and 25-point hunts.

Getting there meant surviving a frantic Q1 first. Rookie Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) set the early pace alongside previous Aragon GP winner Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), with Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) sitting a mere 0.039s shy of the top two. Pecco hit back to climb to P1, but Moreira crashed at Turn 2 with two minutes left, ending his morning early. HRC stablemate Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) threatened with fast splits in S1 and S2, but faded late in the lap, leaving Moreira and Bagnaia to punch their tickets to Q2.

Once the pole shootout started, Marc Marquez dropped a rapid 1:45.136 to set an early benchmark and a brief all-time record, before Bezzecchi answered with the first 1:44 lap of the weekend. Alex Marquez briefly went P2 before the wounded Aprilia rider landed a phenomenal 1:44.984. Meanwhile, World Championship leader Martin faced trouble with his number one RS-GP, sitting P11 early on before salvaging P8 after his first proper flying lap.

Marc Marquez charged again on his second run, running deep into Turn 1 yet staying right on the pace. Through the third split the gap was +0.091s, and across the line it was just over half a tenth before Bezzecchi lowered the benchmark by another 0.022s. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) then crashed at Turn 8 while chasing a personal best. All eyes swung to Marc Marquez for one final shot, and despite clawing the gap down through the sectors, a front-end moment at Turn 14 on his Michelin tyre ended the charge. Game over, pole to Bezzecchi.

Behind the top three, a pair of Aprilias lock down the second row, with Silverstone winner Raul Fernandez (SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team) starting P4 ahead of Martin, while Acosta keeps P6 despite his fall. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) takes P7 on the third row alongside Pecco and returnee Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR). Moreira rounded out the Q2 top 10, with Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) and Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) completing Row 4.