{"id":772845,"date":"2026-07-01T20:56:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/772845\/"},"modified":"2026-07-01T20:56:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:56:22","slug":"the-power-of-ai-inside-oguras-unshakeable-motogp-mindset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/772845\/","title":{"rendered":"The power of Ai: Inside Ogura\u2019s unshakeable MotoGP mindset"},"content":{"rendered":"

The man who last weekend beat outpaced Marc M\u00e1rquez<\/a>, outraced Jorge Martin<\/a>, and left Raul Fern\u00e1ndez in his wheeltracks to become the first Japanese MotoGP<\/a> winner for 22 years may owe it all to his very first rival.<\/p>\n

In fact, Ai Ogura<\/a> credits his first concept of competition to his long-term foe: Karen, his older sister of two years, who raced with her brother from a young age. \u201cShe was faster than me, so she pushed me. I think if she didn\u2019t race, then I would not be like I am today,\u201d says Ogura, before quickly adding \u201cWe are completely different characters\u201d, as if the rivalry is still active.<\/p>\n

Ogura rarely talks in such detail about his background, but in an exclusive interview with Motor Sport, just 72 hours before his momentous Dutch Grand Prix win, the Superfile Trackhouse rider pours out his tale of persistence, resilience and sometimes tough love (\u201csometimes my father kicked me!\u201d). It has carried him from a Tokyo suburb to the heart of this year\u2019s MotoGP title battle and, in news that has just been confirmed, into the Yamaha<\/a> factory team for 2027.<\/p>\n

His background forged an unusually serious, quiet and humble member of the MotoGP grid; attributes that complement his smooth, balletic blur of ability on the Aprilia; a motorcycle that he cranks to an impossible angle (\u201cwhen you follow Ai, it\u2019s strange because it seems he\u2019s crashing every corner \u2026 he\u2019s really down but the bike is straight. I feel like I struggle to follow because I feel he\u2019s crashing \u2026 but then he just turns and goes,\u201d said 2024 world champion and brandmate Jorge Martin after last Sunday\u2019s grand prix). He doesn\u2019t so much ride through corners as slice them open with utter devotion to the front-end stability of the RS-GP. To watch Ogura at pace is a vision of precision and efficiency, of machination.<\/p>\n

His background forged an unusually serious, quiet and humble member of the MotoGP grid; attributes that complement his smooth, balletic blur of ability on the Aprilia<\/a>; a motorcycle that he cranks to an impossible angle (\u201cwhen you follow Ai, it\u2019s strange because it seems he\u2019s crashing every corner \u2026 he\u2019s really down but the bike is straight. I feel like I struggle to follow because I feel he\u2019s crashing \u2026 but then he just turns and goes,\u201d said 2024 world champion and brandmate Jorge Martin after last Sunday\u2019s grand prix). He doesn\u2019t so much ride through corners as slice them open with utter devotion to the front-end stability of the RS-GP. To watch Ogura at pace is a vision of precision and efficiency, of machination.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important thing my parents did was to give me nothing\u201d<\/p>\n

Ogura came within half a second of defeating M\u00e1rquez in Czechia two weeks ago which, he later admitted, was the first moment that he realised that he could finally triumph in MotoGP, a season and a half into his tenure and with just 28 MotoGP starts to his name.<\/p>\n

He carried that momentum to Assen<\/a> with success arriving after another runner-up finish in the Sprint on Saturday, his first front-row start and a simmering sequence of results in 2026 that includes eight top-fives from ten events and one blameless DNF.<\/p>\n

\"Ai<\/p>\n

Ogura made history with his Dutch GP victory<\/p>\n

\n MotoGP\n <\/p>\n

In the Netherlands, he defied a sticking rear ride height device that turned his Aprilia into a stubborn, sparky low-rider for a lap. Jabbing the front brake to release the system, he then diced a two-second deficit to his team-mate Raul Fernandez and Martin to reach the chequered flag through the hot Dutch air and planted a host of milestones at the hallowed facility. The seventh Japanese winner in premier class history, the first non-European since 2022 and only the second non-Spaniard\/Italian victor in the last 75 Grands Prix (France\u2019s Johann Zarco<\/a> being the other, with one win in 2023 and 2025). Ogura has Moto3 podiums and Moto2 spoils on his CV but he is now in the big time and sits fourth, just 25 points from the top of the championship thanks to a methodical and uncompromising approach to his profession.<\/p>\n

In contrast to some of his Andorra-dwelling, Instagram-savvy, private-jetting peers, Ogura still lives with his parents in Kiyose, a neighbourhood north-west of Tokyo and commutes to grands prix. He wanders around the paddock freely, without an entourage and resides in hotels at races for back-to-back events. Ogura used to be based in the small seaside town of Castelldefels, close to Barcelona<\/a> airport, but after six years in Spain as part of the Honda<\/a> Asia project he headed back.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt never felt like home,\u201d he reasons \u201cand the flying does not bother me. I have all my training bikes at home, and I can train better there. The level of the riders that you spend time with on a track day is not high, like it is in Spain, but it\u2019s OK. I just had one motocross bike [in Spain] and many times I wanted to go to a circuit \u2026 but it was closed. I couldn\u2019t prepare like I wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Ai<\/p>\n

Ogura led the first ever Trackhouse 1-2<\/p>\n

\n MotoGP\n <\/p>\n

As talk strays from the racetrack to stories of his upbringing, it\u2019s evident that the conversation has gone beyond the familiar paddock interviews that Ogura conducts in fluent English. When it comes to the vocabulary for his character-building foundations, he falters, drops his head and finally smiles gently: \u201cI know exactly what I want to say in Japanese \u2026 but I can\u2019t find it in English.\u201d<\/p>\n

The family residence is modest. \u201cIt\u2019s a normal house,\u201d he shrugs. \u201cOne time, MotoGP asked to film something there \u2026 but I said \u2018no\u2019 because it\u2019s not something to show. Yes, it\u2019s private, but I don\u2019t care about that\u2026it\u2019s just that it\u2019s not what people might think! It\u2019s not huge, or something to show to the racing fans.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Ogura\u2019s father is a truck driver who used to race as an amateur, and his mother works in a local hospital. Their son went through the traditional Japanese route of pocketbike and minibike series with his sister Karen. \u201cAround pocketbike time she was important because she always went quicker and fought for the victory when I was back in P5-P6. She was always ahead \u2026 and I think it was important for me to have that person in the family. When I moved up to minibikes I was better. It is probably also the last time I raced with her because then we split classes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Ai<\/p>\n

Ogura was on pole in the Czech Republic before his Assen win<\/p>\n

\n MotoGP\n <\/p>\n

Ogura then had his father\u2019s influence. His description of these formative years sounds a little like tough love, but he clearly appreciates the values he was given. \u201cWhen I was really small, pocketbike time, sometimes he kicked me!\u201d he says. \u201cWhen I moved to minibike then he changed completely. He would say nothing to me. Sometimes [at tracks] I would ask \u2018what should I do?\u2019 and he\u2019d say: \u2018think for yourself\u2019. It was interesting. He thought it was better for me. To train my brain and be more independent.\u201d<\/p>\n

How old was he? \u201cSeven or eight [pauses]. It was part of his strategy. If you always have a teacher saying to you \u2018do this, this and that\u2019 then maybe in the next race you do very well but not ten races later. You have to think for yourself, especially if you get to [the level of] GPs then you have to be aware. My father explained this to me only four or five years ago and it was impressive to think he already believed it was the way to go when I was so young.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are not happy with P10 then you need to work harder. That\u2019s all\u201d<\/p>\n

The family competed with what they had until Ogura was accepted to MotoGP\u2019s Asia Talent Cup scheme and he became the first rider to make it all the way up the ladder. Even now his presence in MotoGP imagery comes with an ATC plug. He is the finest exponent of how the platform can find and mould sporting promise, regardless of the social background.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important thing that my parents gave me was to give me nothing,\u201d he explains. \u201cThey kept me \u2018hungry\u2019 all the time. I don\u2019t want to say this to sound a certain way \u2026 but I never had a new bike, I never had new suits or a new helmet. And that kind of thing makes you a bit stronger, a bit hungry. I feel they gave me that. I\u2019d always raced with my family, even if it was difficult for money. I never joined a [racing] school or a team. My first proper team was when I went to JuniorGP!\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Ai<\/p>\n

The title is still within Ogura\u2019s reach<\/p>\n

\n MotoGP\n <\/p>\n

The ATC selection made racing \u201cbecome very serious\u201d because \u201cit wasn\u2019t just about me anymore\u201d. He came close but didn\u2019t win the fledgling series and then attempted Europe at age 15, foregoing any semi-normal adolescence. \u201cThe only thing I was serious about was motorcycle racing,\u201d he says. \u201cBy middle school I was OK with [missing out on friends\u2019 activities] because I would always think: \u2018If was them then I\u2019d be jealous\u2019. I said: \u2018I am super-lucky\u2019. I never thought \u2018I want to be a normal student guy\u2019 or whatever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ogura\u2019s low profile and seriousness mirror the uncluttered mentality to his sport. It\u2019s a clue to why he is so good. \u201cI can think simple. It\u2019s easy for me,\u201d he claims. \u201cThe race is a place to show what you have got and what you can do. If you finish P10 then you are a rider that finished in 10th position. That\u2019s it. I\u2019m ready to accept this and I will be OK. If you are not happy with P10 then you need to work harder. That\u2019s all. I was never [banging the table] after a race. Frustration? No. Because if the guy in P9 went one second faster then you need to go 1.1sec faster. That\u2019s all. Of course, I then think \u2018how?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEmotions just make you slower\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a really hard worker and is always studying what he is doing,\u201d crew chief Giovanni Mattarollo told the Paddock Pass Podcast<\/a> earlier this year. \u201cHe is focused mostly on himself. He never puts any doubt on the bike and, if he is struggling, his first question is, \u2018What am I doing wrong?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s metronomic. He always puts the wheels in the same place, always trying to repeat the same manoeuvre to be consistent. I love to watch how he rides because he\u2019s super-clean. He makes it look super-easy which means he\u2019s going very fast. With Ai, if the bike moves then he understands the limits. We can see the bike is moving on the data but you don\u2019t see it on the camera because it means he\u2019s able to make a step over. In Qatar last year he gave me one of my best lessons in MotoGP; with the same straight face, he said: \u2018emotions just make you slower\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ogura\u2019s tendency to tread his own path was seen most prolifically in his break from the relatively secure confines of the Honda<\/a> Asia project in Moto2 and Moto3 in 2023. He won the title with the Spanish MT Helmets MSi crew in 2024 and then spurned the chance to rejoin the HRC collective and ride Honda\u2019s still undercooked RCV in 2025 for a berth in MotoGP\u2019s newest team, the only American outfit, with a satellite Aprilia.<\/p>\n

\"Ai<\/p>\n

MotoGP\u2019s stars are taking nothing of Ogura\u2019s progress<\/p>\n

\n MotoGP\n <\/p>\n

Judging by Honda\u2019s seven-season loyalty to Taka Nakagami, without a podium result to show for the investment, Ogura could have been comfortably set in the LCR-based saddle. Instead, the space usually reserved for Asian racers (but now inhabited by Brazil\u2019s Diogo Moreira<\/a>) went to his good friend and former housemate Somkiat Chantra, another Moto2 GP winner. The Thai then had a miserable rookie year punctuated by injury and had to find employment for 2026 in WorldSBK.<\/p>\n

At the time Trackhouse\u2019s decision to sign Ogura was greeted with some derision. He clearly had potential but was hardly prolific, and his personality was at odds with the marketing \u2018machine\u2019 that Trackhouse were expected to bring to MotoGP. 2025 was decent enough but two injuries disrupted a campaign that delivered seven top tens.<\/p>\n

As a consequence, the fame and the attention of MotoGP is still alien to some degree, as well as the constant veil of pressure to perform. \u201cAbsolutely not!\u201d he says when we ask if he\u2019s used to it by now, given that he started 2026 as one of the main protagonists, taking podiums in France and Czechia. How does he tackle that side of the job then? \u201cWith time, with experience. Even now sometimes I am not handling it very well \u2026 but I am doing better than in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n

What happened in the past? \u201cThe Asia Talent Cup time was worst,\u201d he recalls. \u201cEvery time before the race I was like \u2018this is f**king important, this is f**king important, this is f**king important\u2019 and it made me anxious. But now it\u2019s quite OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ogura is reluctant to embrace his MotoGP status. He\u2019s \u2018old school\u2019 in this sense. Barely a hint of swagger emanates from his very slight frame. \u201cI never thought: \u2018I\u2019m very good\u2026\u2019\u201d, he admits. \u201cWait! Yes, probably when I won the championship because that says you are number one and nobody can say anything [otherwise].<\/p>\n

\u201cNow if you win a race then there are 22 of them. You might win 3 \u2026 from 22. Hmm. But the championship? Yes. It [the feeling of the title] stays here for ever [touches chest]. Again, I don\u2019t really want to say this because people might go \u2018blah, blah\u2019 but when I won the Moto2 title I knew \u2013 at that time, in that year \u2013 I was number one in the world. This makes me \u2026 calm. It makes me OK. It gives me the feeling that I did something. That\u2019s everything to me. Of course, I am fighting for something important again in MotoGP but if something [bad] happened tomorrow \u2026 then I would be OK.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The man who last weekend beat outpaced Marc M\u00e1rquez, outraced Jorge Martin, and left Raul Fern\u00e1ndez in his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":772846,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[572],"tags":[34422,64,63,5745,806,805,803,804,85],"class_list":["post-772845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-motosport","tag-ai-ogura","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-motogp","tag-motor","tag-motor-sports","tag-motosport","tag-motosports","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/772845","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=772845"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/772845\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/772846"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=772845"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=772845"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=772845"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}