MotoGP | Martin: “If the crash in Q2 had been a highside, I wouldn't be here”

The Prima Pramac Racing Spaniard is happy, more than for the result, for having managed to make up for a Saturday that had proven to be very difficult in the morning, when in the first time attack of Q2 he suffered two consecutive falls which relegated him to sixth place on the starting grid.

In the end, Jorge Martin righted the situation and took another podium, increasing his lead at the top of the general classification, which he now dominates with 67 points, 24 more than Enea Bastianini in second place and 28 more than the reigning champion Pecco Bagnaia, who is fourth.

“This morning wasn't easy at all. I don't know if there was a fault with a sensor on the bike, but perhaps I opened the throttle too aggressively in the second fall. I was lucky, because if it had been a highside I might not have be here out front talking to you. These suits are incredible,” Martin said. “Then, with the soft tire on the front, I saved what I could save and placed sixth.”

Then in the Sprint the World Championship leader did well to climb from this sixth position to the podium.

“It was a good race, I started well but I lost a few positions at the first corner, perhaps I was too cautious. In the first laps I was a bit slow in overtaking and this penalized me. If I hadn't lost those three positions at the At the start, I could have tried to overtake Marc Marquez, but I was passed by Aleix Espargaro, Pedro Acosta and Enea Bastianini, and so I had to start again.”

“From that moment on I had to make up positions, I struggled to overtake Pedro because he braked very late. In the end I found the gap, once I passed I thought about going to catch Marc, but I started to have some problems and I decided to save some physical strength for tomorrow, which will be a long race,” he said.

“The sensations are good. We had vibration problems again, but I'm optimistic for tomorrow because in the race we will have to manage a little more than in the Sprint, and I think this will help us in the central part of the race,” he predicted.

Although he is usually one of the strongest drivers on the grid, Martin admitted that the race was very tough from a physical point of view.

“Today I kept my head down but continued to move forward, until I realized that fighting for second place was too risky and that third place was enough. Going behind a rider is very complicated, and that's why I preferred not to try and take a risk. Tomorrow I hope to make a better start, or at least a better first corner and not lose positions, managing a little more and fighting for the victory”, he said.

Martin's podium (7 points) combined with another bad day for Pecco Bagnaia, who after a bad start only finished eighth.

“I haven't seen anything and it's not something I'm thinking about or interested in at the moment. The World Championship is still so long that we have to move forward day by day and race by race. Today we did an excellent job and I hope to continue to be consistent. At the moment what matters are the points, I'm not thinking about the championship.”

To achieve his goal he will have to fight with a very strong Maverick Viñales, who is enjoying winning races. “Both Aprilia and Vinales are doing a great job. Doing well in qualifying makes things a lot easier,” he concluded, in reference to Maverick's pole position.