What rival MotoGP teams are saying about Jorge Martin’s crash after Aprilia’s Michelin accusation

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Aprilia have implicitly pointed the finger at Michelin after Jorge Martin’s heavy crash on the opening day of MotoGP testing. Martin is a doubt for the season opener in Thailand with fractures in right hand and left foot.

The world champion is flying back to Europe to undergo an operation on his injuries. Afterwards, doctors will advise Aprilia on Martin’s likely recovery timeline.

It’s unlikely he’ll be able to feature in the Buriram test later this month, which means his pre-season preparations will consist of only 13 laps. There could be lasting consequences for Aprilia as their new star signing plays catch-up

Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola hasn’t been able to explain the crash. But based on his initial findings, he’s ruled out rider error or a mechanical issue.

That leaves the tyres as one of the only possible causes. Rivola has asked Michelin for assurances that the compound hasn’t been ‘stored for 11 months’ (via Motorsport).

Ducati rider Marc Marquez felt that Martin’s crash was ‘very strange’. He said grip levels were high after the Sepang Shakedown at the end of last week.

MotoGP rivals think Massimo Rivola is ‘looking after his own’ at Aprilia, including Jorge Martin

MotoGP reporter Jack Appleyard has spoken to figures at Michelin and rival teams, and offered a different take on the highside. It’s possible that the tyres were simply cold.

This wouldn’t necessarily be the fault of the supplier, who have deliberately built a robust medium. Other teams preferred the softs on day one because they offered more grip.

Martin’s teammate Marco Bezzecchi has questioned the tyre allocation for the event. He feels there were too few softs available.

• READ MORE: Everything to know about Jorge Martin from net worth to girlfriend

According to Appleyard, who was speaking on ‘After the Flag‘, Rivola may simply be standing up for his team. He doesn’t want either the engineers or his new signing to come under scrutiny.

“From not only speaking to Michelin, but more so to a couple of members of other teams as well, that looks like a cold-tyre crash,” he said. “A couple of people were saying that the boss of Aprilia is not going come out and say that was a problem with his bike, he’s certainly not going to come out and say that it was a problem with his new star signing.

“He’s going to look after his own. It’s no surprise that he’s said that. It’s up for debate. I don’t think we’ll ever get an answer as to exactly what happened. There’s always two sides to a story.”

Michelin’s response to Aprilia anger over Jorge Martin crash

Aprilia arrived in Sepang full of ‘optimism’ after a hugely exciting off-season. Martin was the headline addition, but Bezzecchi has also scored multiple race wins in the premier class.

Naturally, Wednesday’s events have completely changed the mood at the team. They also lost Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez, though he’s expected to be back for the final test.

Michelin will be sympathetic to Martin, just like the rest of the paddock. But they’re adamant that they weren’t culpable.

Indeed, their MotoGP manager Piero Taramasso pointed out that Martin was outpacing his rivals before his off, which suggests he was enjoying relatively good grip levels. The medium ‘had all the qualities to be high-performance’, he insists.