Martin (Aprilia): Why the MotoGP championship leader fell behind in qualifying

Aprilia factory rider Jorge Martin had recently gained a great deal of confidence. Alongside KTM hero Acosta, Martin was the dominant rider at the Austrian Grand Prix. With two extremely strong performances, reminiscent of the ‘Martinator’ of the 2024 season, he pulled clear of Marc Marquez under his own steam – the number 89 scored a full 12 points more than ‘MM93’.

Martin, who had previously won at Motegi but had a disastrous and frustrating 2025 there, experienced a mixed start to the Japanese Grand Prix, though it ended on a positive note, as Martin fulfilled his actual mission. Eighth place in qualifying meant direct entry into Q2. The time gaps were remarkable. Martin was 0.464 seconds off the pace of number 1, Alex Marquez, and half that behind his Marco team-mate Bezzecchi (4th). Yet even Fermin Aldeguer, who must enter Q1 in eleventh place, was only a tenth of a second slower.

The championship leader seemed rather pensive as he spoke to the media. Martin reported: “It was a bit of a strange day, because I felt really comfortable in the morning but not in the afternoon – the conditions changed and we didn’t get the most out of it.” The fact is: Jorge Martin had finished FP1 in second place behind Marc Marquez.

Sucht nach Verbesserungen: WM-Leader Jorge Martin (Aprilia)

Foto: Gold and Goose

The factory rider for the Noale-based project continued: “Everything clicked in the morning – later on, I couldn’t get the medium tyre to work. We switched to ‘soft’ tyres and now the bike’s balance has shifted. So it wasn’t possible any longer; it was fast enough to achieve the day’s goal, but it’s not good to fall short of our potential. There’s still a lot of work to be done – partly because we started here with a fresh set-up – the 2025 one is useless.”

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There’s no sign of frustration, however; Martin also sees the Japanese Grand Prix as a team effort: “It’s good that I’m so close to Marco – he’s incredibly strong – but there are also sections of the track where I’m faster. The gaps aren’t very big. I’ll try to get even more into the flow over the weekend.”

At Motegi, for the time being, his team-mate is his only point of reference for picking up even more pace. The Trackhouse duo of Ogura and Fernandez missed the chance to qualify directly for the second qualifying session.