Jorge Martín arrived in Valencia with a single objective in mind, to win both races and wait for Pecco Bagnaia’s puncture. He has already fulfilled the first part of the plan, thanks to an excellent victory in the sprint after coming back from sixth position on the grid and overtaking on the track, among others, the MotoGP leader who started second and finished fifth. The distance is now reduced to 14 points, which will be what the Madrid native will have to overcome in this Sunday’s race, for whom only three combinations are worth it to be champion. Winning and Bagnaia finishing sixth or worse, being second and his rival finishing eleventh or worse, or even third and the Italian finishing 15th or worse. Difficult, yes; but not impossible.
And even more so seeing how Jorge Martín has reached this end of the season. The Spaniard is being the strongest and is making the difference on Saturdays. He has won nine of the nineteen sprints that have been held and the victory in Valencia allows him to believe in achieving the dream of the championship: «I have to win the race and hope that Pecco is not comfortable, that he suffers, that he feels the pressure and makes some mistake. failed. “I am more alive than ever, although it is still complicated, but you have to believe.” A belief maintained by the almost 90,000 fans who populated the stands of the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia and who celebrated Jorge Martín’s victory shouting ‘yes, we can’. «I don’t want to get my hopes up, but I hope it happens. It is something that I have dreamed of all my life and it is the occasion in which I am closest to it,” acknowledged the pilot from San Sebastián de los Reyes.
Although the result of the sprint would not be enough for the Madrid native to be champion, it could be a preview of where the race could go. Between Martín and Bagnaia were Brad Binder, Marc Márquez and Maverick Viñales, who are expected this Sunday; and other names could enter the equation such as Fabio Quartararo, who precisely fell when trying to overtake Bagnaia, Álex Márquez or Martín’s teammate, Johann Zarco, who were eighth and ninth in the sprint, respectively. Those who seem to be on Bagnaia’s side are the Italians from Ducati: Di Giannantonio and Bezzecchi, who acted as squires in the sprint, and also Marini or his teammate Enea Bastianini.
«70-30 in favor of Martín»
Beyond the affiliations of each rider, the fight for the MotoGP championship monopolizes all the focus in Valencia and the rest of the grid is also positioned on one side or the other. One of Martín’s great allies is Aleix Espargaró, who this weekend arrived very physically affected by a fracture in his fibula. The man from Granollers will not be able to help his good friend, but he sees him as the great candidate for the title: «For me Jorge has a 70% chance because he does not have the pressure that Pecco has. He only needs to win and he has something that his rival does not have, speed. Each one has their own allies and has their own weapons. Martín has the pace to win and Bagnaia has the points cushion to manage the race.
For several races he has also opted for Marc Márquez from Madrid, who climbed onto the podium in his last sprint with the colors of Repsol Honda. The one from Cervera is especially plugged in this weekend, where he fought for victory and had a battle to the limit with Martín in which both came to touch and the Honda’s wheel was marked on the Madrid native’s suit. “Tomorrow I’m going to run with that monkey that I think is going to give me luck,” Martín commented to Márquez at the podium ceremony. The Catalan, who closed two of his six titles in the last round in Valencia, also wanted to give Martín some advice for this Sunday’s race: «If I were him I would be more attentive to the boards and screens than to escape Obviously, everything depends on winning the race, but if he has the speed as it seems, he can opt for different strategies and has to put drivers in the middle.
The scepter of world motorcycling will be settled this Sunday starting at 3:00 p.m. in a Ricardo Tormo who has hung the ‘no tickets’ sign and who after 27 laps will crown the new king of MotoGP.
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