Raul Fernandez earned a MotoGP contract for 2027 with yet another podium finish

The MotoGP transfer merry-go-round has been spinning with unusual intensity in recent weeks. With several top riders already having been unseated for 2027, it seemed that Raul Fernandez was also set to face the same fate. But with his back against the wall, the 25-year-old from Madrid made it clear in his fifth season in the premier class that he has earned a place for the upcoming MotoGP season. At the Sachsenring, he confirmed this form with a fifth-place finish in the Sprint and third place in the Grand Prix.

The weekend in Hohenstein-Ernstthal got off to a bad start for Fernandez. “We got bogged down in a mix of electronics and tyre problems. I’d almost forgotten how to ride a MotoGP bike. But my team helped me a lot,” said the Madrid-based rider, commenting on his chaotic start to the weekend. “I had enough confidence for one good lap. Not for four or five.”

“To be honest, given the difficulties I’d mostly faced during the practice sessions, I hadn’t expected to be in the running for a podium place at all,” said the 2021 Moto2 World Championship runner-up. “Above all, I was worried about tyre problems, as is always the case at the Sachsenring, where the final laps are very tricky. But I managed quite well, especially in keeping my rear tyre in good condition.”

Once again, however, he was beaten by his team-mate Ai Ogura, who finished just ahead of the eleven-time GP winner on both occasions and is, as is well known, regarded as a ‘tyre whisperer’. Nevertheless, following Ogura’s move to Yamaha, the Superfile-Trackhouse Aprilia team is now planning to field Raul Fernandez for 2027 after all. Both team owner Justin Marks and the new team manager Francesco Guidotti, who joined the US team in Brno, are currently once again speaking in more favourable and flattering terms about Fernandez.

Fernández is therefore heading into the summer break feeling motivated. “We’ll all have to work hard on our fitness. Because the second half of the season will be extremely gruelling. I need to come back stronger after the break.” However, he does not believe he has any chance of challenging for the World Championship title. “First and foremost, I need to improve myself. I’m still making too many mistakes, and as a result my performance is still inconsistent,” says Fernández with surprising humility, having in previous years tended to make statements laced with a healthy dose of youthful optimism.

At the halfway point of the season, Raúl Fernández sits in sixth place in the World Championship standings, now ahead of KTM factory rider Pedro Acosta. Surprisingly, “RF25” is still the lowest-ranked Aprilia rider.