Marco Bezzecchi
Jorge Martin is showing signs of rediscovering winning form after a season-best finish at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The reigning MotoGP champion started 16th on the grid, but was a man on a mission at the start and carved through the field.
With a little bit of attrition, Martin found himself in fourth, crossing the finish line just over three seconds behind his teammate Marco Bezzecchi, who was on the podium.
It was the best overall day in Aprilia’s turbulent 2025 season so far, and they’ll be hoping that recent improvements can be carried into the final eight races of the campaign.
Aprilia just showed Martin a ‘very good sign’ by recovering from a poor Friday almost immediately. It represents a strong understanding of their current bike.
It’s a big reason why Martin left Balaton Park delighted with Aprilia, just months on from a lengthy contract fiasco. With his future committed to them, they’re looking far more settled.
Jorge Martin ‘broke down’ in the Aprilia garage after season-best Balaton Park result
Martin has ‘realised’ Aprilia’s big ‘problem’ and now knows what needs to be addressed most urgently, if they want to be competing for a title in 2026.
Although he won eight fewer Grands Prix than Francesco Bagnaia last year, he delivered exactly what was needed to earn a maiden championship triumph. That experience will serve him and his team well in the future.
Martin was at his ‘limit’ in Austria, but looked far more settled in race trim at Balaton Park. His ride to fourth place on Sunday was assured, and he revealed after the race that he ‘broke down’ in tears in the Aprilia garage.
“I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned not to do more than what I have to do, that today was fourth, another day it will be winning, another day it will be tenth,” he told Diario AS. “This is something I put into practice when I was there catching Bezzecchi.
“And yes, when I got to the pits, I broke down, with my girlfriend crying, because it’s very difficult to understand when you’re feeling bad, how difficult it is to doubt yourself so much. But now I’m healthy and I trust myself more than I did before the injury, so this injury has made me grow.”
READ MORE: Jorge Martin says 2027 MotoGP rider market is a ‘different story’ in fresh warning to Aprilia
How Jorge Martin can keep a five-year MotoGP streak running in 2025
Martin’s fourth place in his third race post-injury is an incredibly respectable showing. He worked hard on his fitness during the summer break, and it will have helped in Hungary.
He now gets two weeks to dissect his performance before heading home to Barcelona, the site of where he claimed his title last year.
It’s the first of eight opportunities to keep a remarkable run going of having scored at least a podium in every season that he has competed in.
In fact, Martin has always scored at least a second place in every season, and going by Aprilia’s current form, there’s still a chance that they can achieve that in 2025, too.
Martin was taken by surprise on his Aprilia return, but should be returning to pre-injury levels of sharpness soon. That’s when Marc Marquez will have to start looking over his shoulder.
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