Jorge Martin wants Aprilia to impose rules on Trackhouse so they don’t interfere with title fight

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Jorge Martin wants Trackhouse riders to face restrictions when racing the factory Aprilias, according to a report.

Martin collided with Raul Fernandez following the second restart at the Catalan Grand Prix last weekend, ending his hopes of scoring points. That allowed teammate Marco Bezzecchi to extend his lead to 15 points.

Aprilia have imposed the ‘black rules’ on their two riders, a play on McLaren’s ‘papaya rules’ in Formula 1, allowing Martin and Bezzecchi to race in their championship battle as long as they do so respectfully.

Jorge Martin pushed Paolo Bonora over dispute about Trackhouse

According to Motorpasion Moto, Martin is ‘insisting’ that these rules are extended to satellite team Trackhouse, a move that would raise questions about their independence.

Effectively, Fernandez and Ai Ogura would be instructed to be less aggressive when racing Martin or Bezzecchi in the hope of avoiding intra-manufacturer incidents.

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However, Aprilia bosses Massimo Rivola and Paolo Bonora don’t see these measures as appropriate at this stage. This was apparently why things became heated between Martin and Bonora in the aftermath of his DNF on Sunday.

Cameras captured Martin pushing Bonora in the garage after the race, though the 2024 world champion later apologised.

Conflicting reports on Raul Fernandez’s future after Jorge Martin incident

The report also adds that Aprilia are ‘furious’ with Fernandez for his role in the aforementioned turn-five collision, even though the stewards saw it as a valid overtake attempt. It comes at a bad time for the Spanish rider.

Trackhouse owner Justin Marks made a rare appearance in the paddock last weekend, partly to identify a replacement for the Honda-bound Davide Brivio and partly to assess Fernandez’s future. The team are losing Ai Ogura to Yamaha and could yet form a brand-new line-up.

Marks already had ‘doubts’ about Fernandez and his chances of earning a new contract have apparently fallen below ‘50%’. Trackhouse have been linked with Enea Bastianini and MotoGP bosses are also pushing them to take on Australian rider Senna Agius before Adelaide joins the calendar in 2027.

It’s worth noting that Davide Brivio is confident Fernandez’s future won’t be affected by the events in Barcelona, so there are contrasting reports coming out of the team.