MotoGP | Martin: “I’m not complaining about the grip, we just have to work harder”

The Barcelona Circuit is an Aprilia fiefdom, here last year Aleix Espargaro triumphed and this weekend he seems to want to do it again. For this reason, the opponents are called to defend themselves and Jorge Martin does not appear to be the absolute favourite. Ducati seemed more tired than the competition on this Catalan Friday and the Pramac rider’s sixth place is proof of this.

Direct Q2 and only two tenths of a gap from the leader of the day Aleix Espargaro: for some it may seem like an achievement, but for Martin it is little. The leader wants more, seeks more. He knew from the start that Barcelona would be a more difficult track, so he worked with the team making important changes. A novelty in box #89, which usually maintains the basic standard, which is enough to make it the star of the weekend.

The base is not enough at Montmelo, where not only Aprilia, but also KTM seemed more effective than the Ducatis, so much so that only the GP24s were classified directly to Q2. The reason can be attributed to the poor grip that the Barcelona track offers and Martin talks about the work carried out inside the garage to explain how he and the team will try to stop Aprilia’s ride.

“The day was good, we had a lot of work to do today, I knew it before starting,” began the Madrid native in the usual meeting with the press at the end of free practice on Friday. “But I think it went well, we tried a different setup. A very big change that we usually don’t make because we stick to simple things. But I think that on this track we had to try something, because the difference between Aprilia and KTM with Ducati is very big and we have to try to close the gap. But it worked very well, it was worth a try.”

The main problem is the very low grip, which affected many riders. Pecco Bagnaia, in particular, complained a lot about it and Martin followed in the wake of his brand mate: “There is no grip, I’m not complaining because it’s something we already know. What we need to do is work a little more, but it’s clear that on tracks where there is no grip we suffer and where there is we have an advantage. In these conditions, there are bikes that work better than ours.”

“The changes to the bike are aimed at closing the gap with the Aprilias and I think we did that, I felt very good in terms of pace. It’s a bike that helps me a lot when riding, whereas last year I lost from the Aprilias. Maybe I lose a little more in other aspects, so we will have to work a little more, but I hope to take a step forward tomorrow,” concluded the championship leader.