Here is the thing about racers and injuries: they simply refuse to stay put. As Motorsport.com reports, the factory Aprilia MotoGP team has confirmed that Jorge Martín is making the trip to Qatar to try and race, even though he is still recovering from a fractured radius in his right arm. It is an absolute battle of resilience for the Madrid native, who suffered a high-speed accident two weeks ago during the Australian Grand Prix sprint while fighting for victory against Marc Marquez.
That nasty spill at Phillip Island broke his right wrist, instantly ending his weekend before organizers eventually had to cancel the main race due to rain and fog. Martín spent five grueling days trying to get fit for Sepang a week later. Unfortunately, reality hit hard on Friday when he finished almost two seconds off the pace in the first practice session and barely managed any laps in the afternoon. He withdrew on Saturday right before qualifying and flew back to Spain.
Now, according to the latest updates, he is packing his bags for Qatar. Whether he actually swings his leg over the Aprilia machine depends entirely on how his right wrist has healed and if he can generate the brutal braking force required at Losail—the exact physical hurdle that stopped him in Malaysia.
"It was a shame not to be able to continue the weekend at Sepang, but simply having had the chance to try was an achievement in itself," Martín said. "I went back to Spain to continue the treatment I need to recover and to arrive in Qatar in the best possible shape. Now we’ll see how the body responds, and we’ll start working with the team on Thursday and see how far I can go."
His arrival lands right in the middle of a heavily distorted weekend at Losail, where Yamaha riders will be missing entirely because the Japanese manufacturer refused to waive employee contract clauses restricting travel to conflict zones. Meanwhile, Marquez arrives with a golden opportunity to secure his eighth title in MotoGP. He can wrap it up if he outscores Martín by 30 points and Marco Bezzecchi—Martín's teammate in the Noale factory garage—by eight.
Bezzecchi himself arrives looking to bounce back from a difficult weekend in Malaysia that ended with a sixth-place finish on Sunday. Sitting 66 points behind Márquez in the standings, the Rimini rider has no choice but to attack in Qatar if he wants to delay the #93’s championship celebrations for another round.
MotoGP
MotoGP
