Jorge Martin believes he is still around five to six tenths away from being able to fight for wins on the factory Aprilia MotoGP bike.
The former world champion endured a difficult first season with Aprilia, as a series of four major injuries limited him to just seven appearances across the 22-round calendar. His strongest result came in August at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he finished fourth, but any momentum was halted by a crash in Japan that resulted in a fractured shoulder.
Martin made his return at the Valencia season finale and took part in the post-race test, which allowed him to better understand the RS-GP and identify areas for improvement. While he said his overall fitness is acceptable, ongoing pain in his ribs, back, collarbone and shoulders has made riding consistently at a high level extremely challenging.
Despite this, Martin was encouraged by the pace he managed to show and feels that once fully fit, he can start pushing closer to the limit. He estimates that closing a gap of around half a second per lap would put him in a position to challenge for victories.
Reflecting on his season, Martin said one of the key lessons he learned was not trying to overdo things. He admitted that earlier in the year, a lack of understanding of the bike led him to push beyond what was necessary, which contributed to several crashes. By Valencia, his focus shifted to riding within his limits, even if that meant not fighting for top results.
Martin now believes that with better knowledge of the bike and a fully recovered body, he can take the next step forward with Aprilia.
