Aprilia has unveiled the ‘Perla Bianca’, a special all-white livery for the San Marino Grand Prix at Misano. The factory RS-GPs of Marco Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin will run the design in Sunday’s race, marking Vespa’s 80th anniversary at Aprilia’s home event.

The design references the white race suit Gilles Villeneuve wore when he won the 1981 Monaco Grand Prix. That suit carried the Piaggio Vespa logo, creating the historical link Aprilia is bringing to its MotoGP machines. The tribute includes Vespa’s historic logo, Villeneuve’s signature on the front section and a new Aprilia Racing design. Villeneuve died in a crash in Belgium in 1982.

Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola described the project as a tribute to Vespa and Villeneuve, two icons from different worlds that left a lasting mark on history and the public. He also connected the timing with the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Madrid, held on the same weekend, and noted that Villeneuve’s final victory came at Jarama in 1981.

The Misano racing picture

Bezzecchi took pole at Misano by breaking the lap record in qualifying. He finished second in Saturday’s sprint after Marc Marquez passed him into Turn 1 on the opening lap. Martin finished third and leads the championship by 14 points. Bezzecchi is third, 22 points behind Martin, and is aiming for his fifth Grand Prix victory of the season. The tribute therefore arrives with Aprilia’s two factory riders prominent in the competitive picture at their home round.