Martin “didn’t enjoy” pressure of being a MotoGP title fighter

The Pramac Ducati rider emerged as eventual champion Francesco Bagnaia’s toughest comPetitor for the 2023 title, winning four grands prix and nine sprints.

Martin kept the championship battle going to the final race of the year but ultimately came up short after a tangle with Marc Marquez ended his Valencia Grand Prix and handed the title to Bagnaia.

He feels that after doing the double at the Japanese GP was the moment where he felt like he could win the championship, but admits the pressure that came with this was difficult to deal with.

“Well, I think Misano was the moment where I said ‘Ok, I’m the best at the moment’,” he said when asked what he thought the turning point in his season was.

“Winning in Misano, in Italy, in their [Ducati’s] home was unbelievable. It was the best feeling ever.

“But then when we went to India, I won the sprint and I was second with the wrong tyre.

“Then I went to Japan and won both, so I think Japan maybe was the point where I said we could win the championship.

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing

“Then the pressure arrived. I didn’t enjoy from Thailand to Qatar, I struggled a lot mentally.

“It was my first time carrying this pressure and I struggled. I didn’t enjoy it. I think when I enjoy it, I am the fastest.

“So, hopefully, next season I improve, I learn and I can enjoy from the first race.”

Martin says the championship got away from him in Indonesian when he crashed while leading comfortably and in Australia when an incorrect tyre choice sent him from first to fifth at the chequered flag. 

“Well, I would say not just one race – maybe two,” Martin added when asked where he thought he lost the championship.

“I would say maybe Indonesia and Australia, which were races where the balance changed from leading by I think 30 points to being back by 27.

“I think that was the point. Maybe being too good at that point gave me overconfidence and I said ‘Ok, I can go away with five seconds, I can win with another tyre, I can win with whatever I want’.

“We are in MotoGP and you cannot do this. You have to be really conscious of where you are and try to be always with the same tools as your rivals.”