One MotoGP rookie was a nervous wreck during his first session, ‘his hand was shaking’

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Three riders have made the step up from Moto2 to MotoGP in 2025. Thus far, they have had varying levels of success in the premier class.

Honda LCR have signed Somkiat Chantra to partner with Johann Zarco. The Thai rider finished down in 12th in Moto2 last year and has struggled to adapt to MotoGP – he is the only rider not to score a point.

Fermin Aldeguer has replaced six-time champion Marc Marquez at Gresini. The Spaniard has shown some signs of promise, but his crash at the Grand Prix of the Americas cost him a strong result.

Moto2 champion Ai Ogura has made the step up to the premier class with satellite Aprilia team Trackhouse. The 24-year-old had a lot of hype surrounding him heading into 2025 and he has certainly lived up to it thus far.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Ai Ogura from height to career stats

Ai Ogura was ‘shaking’ before his MotoGP debut in Thailand

Naturally, the Japanese rider went into his MotoGP debut in Buriram having had limited experience on the RS-GP25 – but he was already making an impression. Alex Rins could not believe Ogura’s pace during pre-season testing in Sepang.

This only added to the hype around Trackhouse’s latest signing, and crew chief Giovanni Mattarollo admits the pressure was getting to him – even if he did not inform his team.

Speaking via the MotoGP YouTube channel, Mattarollo says Ogura was ‘shaking’ before FP1 in Thailand but kept a ‘poker face’ throughout.

“He, if we think about FP1 in Chang, he was nervous. He was really nervous, his hand was shaking during the session, but he never talked about that.

“And he’s a poker face, he’s always a poker face. You have no idea about what he’s thinking or how he’s feeling, never. And he never showed to you.

“But peace for us. It’s good because you don’t need to take care about that. It’s just pure work.

“First of all, he thinks about how he can improve by himself to the performance riding the bike and after that, he starts to talk about the bike.”

READ MORE: Everything to know about Trackhouse including the MotoGP team’s riders

Ai Ogura is Aprilia’s highest-ranked rider after three races in 2025

Ogura certainly put his nerves behind him in Thailand as he finished an incredible fourth in the Sprint and fifth in the Grand Prix. The Japanese rider was giving Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia a hard time as he came close to podium.

Ogura learned to stay calm from Bagnaia as he battled with the two-time champion on track. Marc Marquez congratulated Ogura for his performance in Thailand as he showed his potential to his rivals.

Trackhouse have done well to keep the 24-year-old grounded. Davide Brivio warned Ogura of difficult weekends in MotoGP – it would come at the next round in Argentina as he was disqualified from the race.

After finishing ninth in the Sprint and the main race in Austin, Ogura sits sixth in the standings with 25 points. While back-to-back motorcycle Grand Prix titles are likely off the table, the 24-year-old has proven he can produce some strong results in the premier class.