Jorge Martin made his return to the MotoGP grid after three months out with injury at the Czech Grand Prix.
The defending MotoGP champion was not classified in the standings ahead of the event, having not completed a full race distance. After missing pre-season and the opening three races after a crash at Sepang, he sustained more injuries in an accident in Qatar.
Martin made his long-awaited return at the Czech Grand Prix, where he was subject to multiple questions surrounding his future. Martin is set to stay at Aprilia in 2026, after surrendering his bid to leave the team following a stalemate in negotiations.
It was an emotional comeback for the Spaniard, with Martin admitting he almost cried during his press conference. The 27-year-old was keen to get back onto his RS-GP25 and push to the limit around Brno, but he perhaps did that too extremely on occasion.
Photo by Mark Wieland/Getty ImagesJorge Martin admits to Marc Marquez he ‘almost crashed’ trying to follow him at the Czech Grand Prix
Martin ignored a stern warning from Aprilia, who told him not to take too many risks. He was seen pushing hard in qualifying and dipped a wheel on the grass, before ending the session in 11th.
The day before, the Aprilia rider put in an impressive performance in the wet conditions to finish P5 and automatically qualify for Q2. Before his media debrief, he was seen talking to championship leader Marc Marquez, where he admitted he almost had an accident while trying to follow him.
He told Marquez, via a behind-the scenes video from Ducati: “I tried to follow you and almost crashed…” The 32-year-old replied: “I was going fast there,” as he topped the free practice session.
Martin noticed from his fellow compatriot that he was having a slight snap at the front end while entering corners: “From the front, I could see you were kind of…” to which Marquez replied: “Yeah, we don’t have a great feeling there.”
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Photo by Hazrin Yeob Men Shah/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Martin went on to climb his way through the field and finish an impressive seventh on his return to the grid. Teammate Marco Bezzecchi fought Marquez for victory, leading the race at one stage, but had to settle for second in what was a strong outing from Aprilia.
The Spaniard now has four weekends to properly recover from his injuries and ensure he is 100% fit for the next race in Austria. Martin’s father was seen putting his gloves on for him; he was clearly still feeling the effects from his scaphoid injury over the winter.
Massimo Rivola expects Martin to take three races to ‘get his act together’ and match the pace of Bezzecchi. The Italian has been looking strong on the RS-GP25, having developed the bike practically on his own in his teammate’s absence.
Martin is now set to benefit from Aprilia’s ‘unprecedented’ upgrades, with the Noale outfit having made significant progress during testing. The RS-GP25 can give the 27-year-old exactly what he needs to cause a stir at the front in the second half of the season.