With reigning two-time champion Francesco Bagnaia in sizzling form, it was far from a foregone conclusion and the Spaniard needed all his patience and consistency in Barcelona on Sunday to get the third place finish that gave him the title.
AFP picks out three things about the new world champion.
– Rocky road –
Grit combined with talent have helped Martin negotiate the rollercoaster journey that began when he met MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi at his first racetrack visit aged eight and climaxed 18 years later with Sunday’s world title triumph.
“The Martinator”, as he is known, showed his drive and determination back in 2013 when financial struggles and lack of sponsors threatened to derail his chosen career path.
His rookie MotoGP season in 2021 began with a bang, a practice crash in the third weekend in Portugal left him with physical and mental scars. Then last season his title hopes were cruelly dashed when he hit the deck in the final race in Valencia.
A promise is a promise
Martin bounced back from that 2021 crash in Portugal to notch up his first premier class win from pole in the Styrian MotoGP. It happened on August 8 and that date is etched not just in his mind but also on his body: of his 15 tattoos, ‘080821’ remains his favourite.
The man from Madrid became only the third rookie after Marc Marquez and Brad Binder to notch up a win in their rookie season in the modern era of MotoGP. In the closing laps of his maiden win there was one thought foremost in his mind.
He had told his team if he got on the podium in the second half of his first season he’d take them all on holiday, to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. As he took his first chequered flag, his pitlane crew were cheerily chanting “Punta Cana, Punta Cana”.
To prove he is a man of his word after the season finished, he posted a team photo on a Caribbean beach with the caption: “A promise is a promise”.
Ducati’s dilemma
Back in June, Ducati bosses were losing sleep as they wrestled with a thorny employment issue.
Who to pick as 2022 and 2023 world champion Bagnaia’s teammate on the factory bike?
In one corner Marc Marquez, the six-time former title-holder now riding for Ducati’s Gresini satellite team. In the other, Martin, who had won the 2018 Moto3 title with Gresini, then after a spell with KTM moved up to MotoGP back at Ducati for their Pramac satellite outfit.
They eventually decided to bet on Marquez, forcing Martin to leave the Ducati stable for Aprilia from next season. But not before the 26-year-old had been reportedly informed he was to be the chosen one at the factory team, with Ducati counting on Marquez replacing him at Pramac.
That plan went badly awry when Marquez shut the door on Pramac, saying it was the factory bike or nothing. Ducati capitulated to his demands, triggering Martin’s departure from the Bologna manufacturer.
That snub must have acted as a powerful motivating factor for Martin as he set about toppling sitting champion Bagnaia and riding off with his maiden MotoGP crown.
“It was a very difficult choice for us, because we love Jorge very much,” Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali said in July.
“So the choice was Jorge or Marc. Jorge has been with us for a long time, he is very strong. It was very difficult. Time will tell if it was the right choice or not.”
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