Aprilia, a start to the season full of hope despite the absence of Jorge Martin

"The challenge is huge, because I'm taking a bike that was eighth or ninth, instead of a bike that was first, second, third or fourth, which is the Ducati. If I start with fifth positions, and I end up winning races, I'll be very proud. Or doing second places. The important thing is to move forward." Jorge Martin was very cautious in January when discussing his ambitions for his first season at Aprilia. After his time at Ducati, which ended with a world championship title won with the satellite team Pramac, the Spaniard went to Aprilia, which could offer him what Gigi Dall'Igna refused him: a seat in a factory team.

With the Noale brand, the reigning world champion did not hope to play at the top of the standings straight away, but the RS-GPs proved to be efficient in Thailand. Ai Ogura created a surprise for his first weekend in MotoGP by confirming his good qualification (5th) in the sprint race (4th) then during the Grand Prix (5th). “Seeing Ai Ogura repeat his sprint performance is wonderful, although for us, who have been following him since his first laps at the Sepang shakedown, it is no surprise. Ogura rides with incredible precision and has great confidence in the bike.” greets Massimo Rivola, the boss of Aprilia.

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Aprilia shines in Thailand thanks to Ogura and Bezzecchi

The Italian had reason to smile: just behind the Japanese, Marco Bezzecchi took 6th place after a great race, where he erased his disappointment from qualifying (8th). "In the end, it's not"I'm not better or worse than I expected to start the season. To be honest, I was hoping for better in qualifying, but I'm not the best in time attack." regrets the former VR46 pilot. “I didn’t try many timed laps during the test because of the elements to try, so we didn’t focus on that a lot, and I think I’m paying a little bit for that. That’s where I need to improve the most. I think I need to ride more on instinct. I’m used to doing what I’ve done in the last few years, so the bike doesn’t always adapt to my way of riding in time attacks.”

Jorge Martin is the big absentee at the start of the season. @Red Bull Content Pool

The disappointment of the third-place finisher in the 2023 championship is a testament to the possibilities offered by his RS-GP, which once again seems very well placed in the hierarchy behind the untouchable Ducati, who scored a resounding quadruple in Buriram in the wake of Marc Marquez. "We are happy because we see that the Aprilia bikes are competitive, especially on a historically difficult circuit." rejoices Lorenzo Savadori, the brand's test driver, replacing Jorge Martin today. “The RS-GP25s were fast both in the race and in the Time Attack, which is definitely a positive sign. We made some progress and some interesting aspects emerged that will also be useful for the development of the bike.” His boss Massimo Rivola shares his satisfaction by mentioning "a solid race" from "the second best team", which attests to the “extraordinary talent present in Noale. »

The weekend was however more difficult for Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia), who did not manage to capitalize on his good qualification (7th). The Spaniard finished 11th in the sprint and had to abandon during the Grand Prix, betrayed by a mechanical problem on his bike. The Italian team now heads to Argentina to contest the second round of the season, where Jorge Martin will still be missing, not having recovered enough from his hand injury. "We go to Argentina very motivated, knowing that it is a circuit that better suits the characteristics of our bike. We will give it our all, also to show that when Jorge returns he will find a very competitive bike." promises Massimo Rivola. The Aprilia boss knows that his RS-GPs were at ease during the last edition of the event in 2023, won by a certain Marco Bezzecchi riding VR22's Ducati GP46. The Italian, who was taking his first victory in the premier category of motorcycle speed, will certainly hope to do as well on the Termas de Rio Hondo track, this time riding an Aprilia.

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