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Bezzecchi is back. The claim comes with great simplicity, perhaps too much. For sure, Marco Bezzecchi finished Friday at Silverstone ahead of everyone else, setting a new track record along the way. But that is only the revealed face of the moon. On the other side lies the profile hidden under a race suit and locked inside a helmet: a body that presents the bill and a physical suffering that is far from vanished. The Aprilia rider, let us remember, left Sachsenring before the summer break with a fractured collarbone and a battered knee. "The fracture was really bad and I'm missing a piece of bone in the knee, it's swollen and full of fluid". The psychology of a rider usually acts as a panel beater with injuries: patching up, covering, putting a lick of paint over the cracks, and moving forward as if nothing happened. But when he stops playing things down, when he no longer polishes the damage but shows it to you nude and crude, it means that the red warning light is genuinely on. And Bez didn’t shy away from this in front of the microphones. With his usual frankness, he admitted to feeling "fundamentally bad", having gritted his teeth to pull off that astonishing lap, but also that the real goal of the weekend is not to chase a special result: it’s to manage to get through both races. Nothing more. “I feel bad. Fundamentally bad. I'm suffering - openly admitted the rider from Romagna - For one lap, maybe a time attack, I can grit my teeth just enough, but when it’s about doing several laps, I suffer a lot. Both the shoulder and knee, especially the knee, are causing me some trouble. We expected it, obviously, because they were two odd injuries. But that’s the way it is. So I'm very happy with the day, because it was nice to start off well again, but at the same time I’m also a bit worried about tomorrow.” Did your performance exceed your expectations, given your physical condition? “Yes, for sure I didn’t think I’d restart so well right away. But, as I said before, it’s more than about one lap. Regarding the pace, there are many fast riders, even faster than me who will definitely be the favourites. But I’m still happy with how the day went. Now we must try, tonight, to do everything we can to manage the pain, the swelling, the inflammations, and everything that comes with putting stress on shoulder and knee. But at least for a day I have the track record! Hopefully, it lasts tomorrow as well.” Did you use painkillers today? “I will surely use them during the weekend.” It’s impressive to have set that time under these conditions. Was it a mental thing, like “I can do it, and I want to do it,” or did it just happen? “Well, let's say holding back, especially in a time attack, is difficult, because you can easily get overtaken by others. I did the first time attack, and when I stopped at the box, I checked the standings on the iPad. I had done a good time, a great time, 1’57”1. But damn, behind me, they were all 57”1, 57”2, 57”2… So I said: “Damn, I have to push, otherwise they will pass me. And it was, of course, nice.” So, you didn’t think too much about the risks! “If I think too much about the risk, at this point I’d stay home! Anyway, I'm already all beat up,” replied the #72 jokingly. There was also an exchange of looks with Diggia, even a rude gesture. What happened? “He got in the way by going slow, and I was coming at speed.” Regarding the performances: Was a Friday like this needed to restart after everything that happened before the break? “Yes, yes, it was a good Friday. It was needed for me, for the team, a bit for everyone. A happy day, so to speak. Also, in past weekends we had some good moments, it’s true, but when it mattered, things were tougher. It's just a Friday, but I'm happy. Then, more or less, I will have to survive the rest of the weekend. We already knew this and know what we are facing. But at least today we had a nice satisfaction.” What sort of result would you sign up for today thinking about Sunday? “To be able to finish both races. It’s true that the Sprint is shorter, but the intensity of those laps is very high. So, we'll try to do everything possible. This afternoon and evening, I’ll try to rest and recover with the physiotherapist, with the Aprilia medical staff, and with everyone helping me, to try to wake up tomorrow at least in the same condition as today.” Indonesia 2023: you raced less than a week after a fracture, also in the collarbone. Is the pain situation comparable? “Back there, the surgery was very recent, it’s true, but it was a different fracture. This time the surgery was tougher because the fracture was really bad, and, in addition, I had to have surgery on my knee too. So maybe, as pure shoulder pain, it was worse back then. But here it's not just the shoulder, it's a combination of things. Then this track is very tough, very. It's true that in Indonesia it’s hot, but the track is a bit smoother. Here there are very fast sections, hard braking, long straights... neck, head, shoulder, everything.” And about the knee specifically, what can you tell us? During sessions, we saw you stretching your leg several times. “The knee injury seems less significant, but in the end, it's what’s driving me crazy. It’s almost like having a fracture: I’m even missing a small piece of bone. But it's also very swollen, full of fluid. The days at home were a disaster. Initially, it seemed like just a wound, but it was very deep. In Germany, they closed it to allow me to fly, but they had to reopen it later. When they did, they saw I had also injured the kneecap bone. So the knee operation was complicated, too. At home, during this break, it was impossible to relax. I had surgery on Sunday, and by Monday, I was already in the gym. I did everything I could to try to come back here, and it wasn't easy. On the bike, I'm struggling, especially in direction changes, because I can't fully bend the leg, and it’s difficult. And on this track, there are countless direction changes.” Back to the good stuff. Earlier you said “it’s just Friday,” but the Aprilias are all up front, only Di Giannantonio was between them. “They are all extremely fast. For sure, Raul, Marc, Diggia, Alex Marquez, Ai, Jorge… they all have a very fast pace. In the few laps I managed to push, I'm not in a bad position. The problem is doing many in succession: that’s what worries me a bit the most. But yes, they are all very fast. We’ll try to do the best to stay with them, at least as long as I can. If I manage for all the laps, great. If not, for as many as I can, we’ll try to compete and aim for a good race,” concluded the Aprilia rider.