Jorge Martin extends his World Championship lead to 31 points at Silverstone—his approach today is different from what it was in 2024
With pole position, a win in the Sprint, and second place in the British Grand Prix, Jorge Martin extended his lead in the World Championship to 31 points. After the Silverstone weekend, his Aprilia teammate Marco Bezzecchi is second in the World Championship.
For Martin, however, what’s much more important is that he’s rediscovered a good setup and feel for his RS-GP: “That was more important to me than the result: regaining my feel, regaining my speed.”
“We’ve managed to climb out of the hole we were in, and that naturally gives us a lot of motivation. I have complete confidence in my team and in myself.”
“I knew it was only a matter of time before we’d get out of this situation. But just because we won [the Sprint] at Silverstone now doesn’t mean everything is suddenly fine.”
“We have to confirm this in the next few races,” says Martin, because the Silverstone track layout suits the Aprilia better than the Ducati. In two weeks, Aragon will show whether Martin can repeat this performance.
Martin won the Sprint with new aerodynamics at the rear. Otherwise, his base setup is the same as it was at Le Mans, where he won both the Sprint and the Grand Prix.
“It’s the same motorcycle we used at Le Mans,” Martin confirms. “Of course, we now have some new parts, which you can see in the aerodynamics. But the setup is at the same level as it was at Le Mans.”
What happened with the ride-height system at the start
In the Grand Prix, the Spaniard lost the battle in the first corner to Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse-Aprilia), who was able to pass on the inside. As Martin leaned into the corner, sparks flew.
This showed that his ride-height device on the rear shock absorber wasn’t deactivated. “I didn’t get off to a particularly good start—or rather, Raul got off to a much better start than I did. I could hear his bike.”
Sparks everywhere due to @ 88jorgemartin and @aiogura79& 39’s rear ride height device ✨BritishGP pic.twitter.com/xdZIFHcGI9
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) August 9, 2026
“Then we went into the first corner, and I just wanted to hold the lead, so I didn’t brake. I didn’t brake hard enough, so my rear ride-height system didn’t return to its normal position.”
“That’s just how it is. Then I went to the left, Marc passed me, and I lost quite a bit of time because of that. But I think it was more my fault because I was so determined to hold the lead instead of braking a little.“
”Then I might have had a chance to be in second place behind Raul, but I was too optimistic.” Martin finished the first lap in third place. It wasn’t until lap nine that he was able to pass Bezzecchi.
Martin was too conservative behind Fernandez
At that point, Fernandez was leading by 4.4 seconds. It wasn’t until the final quarter of the race that Martin closed the gap. Before the final lap, the gap between the two Aprilia riders was 2.5 seconds.
“When I was in second place, Raul already had a lead of about five seconds,” Martin said of his comeback. “So I just tried to set my own pace on the track.”
“In a few laps, I saw that I was getting a little closer and closer to him, so I thought maybe he’d start to slow down. But he managed it incredibly well.”
Martinator attacks Bez for second place ⚔️BritishGP pic.twitter.com/c2FcrevlIE
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) August 9, 2026
“I was definitely more focused on attacking than on defending second place. We paid very close attention to tire wear and tried to conserve the tires all weekend.”
“We were driving with low power, and I think we overdid it. In the last three laps, I put more strain on the tire, and it still held up. So, to be honest, we were too conservative.“
”The most important thing for me is that I’m consistently fast again. Regardless of the result, what matters is that we’re competitive again. That’s the most important thing, and we can fight in the next race.”
How Martin views his World Championship lead
A maximum of 37 World Championship points can be earned in a single race weekend. Martin’s 31-point lead is already a relatively comfortable cushion. How does he view this situation compared to his 2024 World Championship season?
“Good question. For me, it’s not really important right now whether I’m first, second, or whatever. I’m just trying to constantly improve. I’m always thinking about how I can improve and get better.”
“If I have the chance to fight for the title, that’s good enough for me. Two years ago, I was downright obsessed with always being out front and taking the lead. But honestly, that takes a lot of energy.”
“Now I’m not focusing on the result, but on becoming a better athlete and a better Jorge. The result of that is that we’re doing the right things and I’m leading the championship.”
