Aprilia gives gift to MotoGP race winner, but it’s not a bike

Aprilia has given Marco Bezzecchi a decidedly unexpected gift following his win at the opening MotoGP race of the season.

Bezzecchi was dominant at the MotoGP season opener in Thailand on 1 March, winning by over five seconds from Pedro Acosta, who won the Sprint the day before when Bezzecchi crashed out.

Thailand’s was Bezzecchi’s third Sunday race win in succession in MotoGP, after winning the final two grands prix of last year in Portugal and Valencia.

Valencia saw one of Bezzecchi’s increasingly popular post-race celebrations when he stopped on the cooldown lap after the race and presented an engagement ring to his RS-GP. The ‘wedding’ was conducted in Malaysia earlier this year before the preseason test at Seapang – an elaborate way to announce Bezzecchi’s renewal with Aprilia for 2027 and beyond in MotoGP.

That Valencia celebration followed on from Bezzecchi’s fake-leg-waving cooldown lap after the Misano Sprint last summer, as he made reference to the Italian comedy film Tre Uomini e una Gamba, or ‘Three Men and a Leg’.

The most recent post-race episode from Bezzecchi was completed by Aprilia recently when it delivered a gift to Bezzecchi that he’d requested after the Thailand win.

It wasn’t an RS 250 two-stroke like Aleix Espargaro had wanted after he’d won on the RS-GP, rather Bezzecchi had asked the Noale factory for a Piaggio Ape.

If, like us, you only became aware of the Piaggio Ape when you found out about Bezzecchi’s request, you might be unaware that it’s a three-wheeler that’s found in Piaggio’s commercial section. Perhaps the Italian was inspired by the tuk tuk race that MotoGP held instead of the usual, dreary rider parade on Sunday morning before the Thailand race, or maybe he sees a future in fast food delivery. 

The Ape was delivered to Bezzecchi while he was training at Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Motor Ranch by Aprilia MotoGP test rider Lorenzo Savadori, who demonstrated the colossal performance of the Ape’s 1.9kW (2.5bhp) engine, as you can see for yourself below.

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