Jorge Martin says it’s time for Aprilia to be “more united than ever” after he came under fire from team boss Massimo Rivola for triggering a major pile-up in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Aprilia Racing CEO Rivola publicly criticised Martin for crashing at the start of the Balaton Park race, saying the 2024 MotoGP champion should have been more careful given the circumstances.
The incident had widespread ramifications for the Italian marque, with Martin taking out both team-mate Marco Bezzecchi and Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez after going down at Turn 1 – something Rivola said made Aprilia look “stupid”.
Speaking on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Czech GP, Martin said the team would be “shooting itself in the foot” if it didn’t work together to achieve its goals.
“I think it’s time to be more united than ever because if we are one against one another, it’s like shooting ourselves [in the foot]. Like, it’s nonsense.
“We have to be intelligent. I will be intelligent. I spoke with Marco after the race twice. For sure, it was difficult at that moment.
“I spoke today with Massimo and I think we are on the same line. Now it’s different compared to two weeks ago and everything is in the same direction.”
Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / Getty Images
Asked if he was surprised to see Rivola making such strong comments in Hungary, Martin added: “Every person has their own opinion. I cannot share everybody’s opinion.
“I was the first one who didn’t want to crash into nobody. I’m so sorry for the teams. I just want to learn from that mistake, but this is racing.
“Sometimes I make it, sometimes they make it to me, sometimes other riders can crash into other riders, and the important thing for me is to learn, and that luckily nothing important happened.”
Martin disputed Rivola’s suggestion that the accident was caused by rider error, insisting he didn’t do anything strange – although he admitted he could have hit the brakes earlier.
“Honestly, I didn’t do anything strange,” the Spaniard said. “As soon as I touched the brake, I lost the front, so I released a bit. But in this first-gear corner, as soon as I released, I was really much faster than the rest.
“I tried to brake again, and then I lost a bit more of the front, and then, I completely lost control.
“I really hoped at that point that I was able to recover the control, but it was impossible.
He added: “I learned that maybe I had to brake two meters before. I didn’t do anything crazy. I didn’t want to overtake, but if I go to Balaton next time, I will be more careful.
“Anyway, I will not lose my sense, I will not lose my hunger, and I will try to overtake always in the first corner as many riders as I can, because this is my instinct, and I will continue to do it. The day I feel I lose this, I will stay at home.”
