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FEATURE I 2024 CYCLE NEWS RIDER OF THE YEAR: JORGE MARTIN
mistakes in Jerez, Sachsenring
and Misano. Japan was very
important. Our target was to
start on the first row, but he was
11th [in qualifying]. He recov
-
ered and even tried to catch
Pecco but saw it was too
risky
and settled for second. In Phillip
Island, of course, the plan was
to win the Sprint and the race.
But we said before the race on
Sunday, 'If you can win, go for it!
But if something happens and
Marc [Marquez] is there, don't
do stupid things, and bring the
points back to the garage."
Martin's ability to manage
the pressure even drew the
praise of his rivals. "For sure
[Jorge]'s grown," Cristian Gabar
-
rini, Bagnaia's crew chief, told
Cycle News.
"If you look at the
numbers, he won a lot less
races than Pecco, but he won
the championship. That means
Despite the Prima Pramac Ducati's
status as a satellite team, the Ducati
staff were always there to help with
no secrets hidden, as Martin confers
with Ducati Corse General Manager
Gigi Dall'Igna.
Martin with girlfriend, Maria. "I think
Maria has helped him a lot to settle
and relax."—Albert Valera.
"I was more focused
on the hope of winning
than on the fear of
losing. I mean, if I lose,
okay, I'm not dying. But
I was with a lot of hope
of winning. This helped
me a lot."
