Jorge Martín secured two podium finishes in the first two rounds of the MotoGP season, including a victory at the Portuguese Grand Prix that propelled him to the top of the championship standings. Unlike last year, the Pramac Ducati rider has shown strength and competitiveness from the outset, and Carlos Checa sees him as more mature and ready to contend for the title.
In an interview with Motosan.es, the former rider analyzed the current form of the championship leader: ‘Jorge is a rider who was fighting for the title last year, but before that, he wasn’t a contender. He is growing, he is reaching a position he hadn’t had before, and he is acquiring all of that, shaping himself, and I think he is becoming increasingly mature, more consistent’.
After Martín fought for the title until the last race of last year, Checa sees him even more prepared to be champion in 2024: ‘I believe that this year he is more prepared than ever to fight for the championship, above all, he is managing better and is most probably a more effective Jorge Martín, with fewer errors, and he is more prepared for the championship this year than he was last year’.
So far, everything is going well for Martín: he finished in the top three in both the Sprint races and the main races in Losail and Portimão, without making major mistakes. He already has 60 points, 18 more than Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) who is in second place.
While this difference is not greater than the points available in a single Grand Prix, it already provides some psychological comfort despite being a very early stage of the season. After all, the Spanish rider is the one being pursued and not the pursuer, a situation he has never experienced since joining the premier class.