Jorge Martin (Ducati): “The walls are close” / MotoGP

Pramac Ducati ace Jorge Martin was one of the main characters in the first official MotoGP press conference on Thursday afternoon in Jerez de la Frontera. The 26-year-old World Cup leader from Madrid was in excellent form ahead of his first home game of the season.

“There were good points for the World Cup in Austin recently. Of course, the Spanish Grand Prix is ​​always special,” smiled Martin and then recalled: “I have good memories of the podium from Moto2. But the point is that I am improving here and the MotoGP bike. I had a good pace, but I’m definitely trying to improve that. We got something from Saturday to Sunday at the end of the season in 2023. Now I have to focus on being strong from the start. I have to be calm when I can be a little nervous. That will be the key.”

Martin knows: “The tires have gotten better, but now we have other problems as well. We have a lot of ribs.” Regarding the Jerez route itself, Martin says: “Of course Jerez is very narrow – the walls are close. But I know that Dorna did a good job with the Safety Commission. They have installed a lot of air fencing so that there are no problems. I also hope for a safe weekend for everyone .”

Regarding the frequent chatter problem on his GP24 Ducati, Martin adds: “A lot depends on how you approach the race. If we start too soon we will have problems. Together with Ducati we are under pressure to solve this. On the other hand: “If we have already achieved these results for these problems, then you know how great our potential is. But I have to slow down and be careful at the start of the race. Otherwise it will be very difficult if the chat starts early.”

Regarding the unique prestige of the Jerez Cauldron, Jorge Martin says: “It’s hard to win alone! Here is something completely different. My family has been coming here to see Doohan and Criville since before I was even born. As Assen is also a legendary slope.

Martin then showed how well he knows his opponent in a social media challenge: He correctly listed ten of the eleven assigned drivers on the board in order of increasing age.