Marco Bezzecchi
Despite a brilliant finish at the French Grand Prix, Aprilia don’t want to get carried away with their expectations this season.
Jorge Martin won the French Grand Prix in scintillating fashion, moving past his teammate, Marco Bezzecchi, in the last few laps of the race to earn his first win in over 500 days.
This was the ideal result for Aprilia, who earned their first one-two finish of the season, and now have both riders right at the top of the championship standings.
A thrilling win for Jorge Martin at Le Mans, as Marco Bezzecchi misses out to his teammate! But what stood out to you at the French Grand Prix?
This time last year, Massimo Rivola had to convince Martin to stay with Aprilia, telling him that the good times would come by again.
But for all the positivity in the Aprilia camp right now, Paolo Banora doesn’t want to hear any talk of a championship at this point in the season.
READ MORE: Forget Marco Bezzecchi, Jorge Martin is going to win the MotoGP title after Marc Marquez injury
Paolo Banora reveals Aprilia have not put ‘championship’ expectations on Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi
Speaking to TNT Sports after the French Grand Prix, Aprilia’s race manager, Paolo Banora, was hesitant to talk about a possible championship for either rider.
Banora praised both Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi for following the game plan and ensuring that they put the team’s result above their own desire to win.
“Please don’t say championship. In Italy, we are so superstitious. But I love to hear it because it is the first time in our racing history that we can achieve something like this. We don’t put any expectations on our riders…
“In the meeting that we typically have with both of them, we said clearly, ‘Please, guys, this is another race. Keep the same way of working as you did in the last one. We haven’t achieved anything at the moment. So please, take care, be patient. We totally trust you. Keep working.’”
Even with both riders at the top of the pack, Banora was quite scared about one of them costing the other the race.
READ MORE: Jorge Martin comparing the 2026 Aprilia to his title-winning Ducati should worry Marco Bezzecchi
Jorge Martin with a STUNNING move to claim the win at Le Mans! 👏 Is this the overtake of the season?
Paolo Banora explains why he was scared during the French Grand Prix
Banora revealed that neither rider had been given any stern instruction on how to handle a one-on-one battle, which is why he and the team were nervous during the closing stretch of the race.
“It’s the first time three Aprilias are on a podium. We have to thank our three riders… Ogura did a great job today. Jorge and Marco managed it so well. They jumped during the first part of the race.
“Despite a little group of riders in the first lap in front of Jorge, he overtook many riders. He did a great job with a great race pace.
“When I saw Jorge immediately behind Marco, to be fully honest with you, typically, I have no fear. But I started to be scared about the situation because we didn’t say anything to our riders. They have to do their game. Both of them, at this moment, can achieve something really good for them and for us.”
In the end, both Bezzecchi and Martin managed to have a clean race, and neither created a difficult situation for the other during their battle.
Of course, as the race between Bezzecchi and Martin intensifies, Aprilia will have a hard time managing the championship battle.
But for now, it’s all smiles in the Aprilia camp, as they walk away with the best result possible at Le Mans.
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