Last Thursday, Aleix Espargaró announced he would retire from MotoGP at the end of this season. One of the riders present for the announcement was Jorge Martín, who was visibly emotional.
In a press conference, the Prima Pramac rider spoke about his emotions upon hearing the announcement of his rival: ‘Well, I spoke with him before and he was like, «I’m not going to cry, I’m not going to cry». And finally, I cried. For sure he’s a really important person in my life. I remember in 2013, I was his fan, I have some photos with him and he didn’t even know me’.
Martín then described his relationship with Espargaró, which goes beyond friendship and rivalry as MotoGP riders fighting for results on the track:
– He’s not only my friend, he’s my brother. Sometimes I’m his son, I join him for dinner with his family a lot of days in Andorra. I think he’s one of the most important persons in my life, so how could I not cry?
The current leader of the World Championship concluded: ‘I’m so happy for him, because he did a lot to stop a bit, to be with his family. He will have time. Now will be even more difficult to follow him on the bycicle [laughts], but I’m so happy for him and his family’.