Francesco Bagnaia hailed Jorge Martin’s epic comeback from a nightmare 2025 MotoGP season as “admirable”, saying the Aprilia rider has emerged as a genuine title threat.

Martin dominated last weekend’s French Grand Prix, winning both the sprint and the main race after a difficult qualifying to move one point behind his team-mate Marco Bezzecchi in the championship standings.

The Spaniard’s early 2026 form is in stark contrast to his first year with Aprilia, when he suffered four injuries, struggled for competitiveness and even tried to trigger an early exit clause in his contract. 

Bagnaia knows Martin well from their time together at Ducati, with the latter having also beaten him to the 2024 title in an epic showdown that went down to the wire in Valencia.

The Italian feels Martin is now beginning to show the calmness and consistency that underpinned his title-winning 2024 campaign.

“He’s clearly a title contender,” Bagnaia said when asked about Martin’s performance by Motorsport.com. “He’s using the same strategy he used in 2024 - finishing every race. 

“Here, he finished every race first. But in general, he’s also very good at knowing when to settle for less. So, that’s a plus. I lost the world championship to him for that very reason. 

“When I saw him on Saturday, we both had lunch in the hospitality area at Alpinestar. He looked very relaxed. He knew he could do it today, and he did. 

“I’m very happy for him. He deserves it. Last year was very tough for him. I think he had 21 fractures last year. So, having the strength to come back to this level is admirable. 

“Congratulations to him and especially to Aprilia, which gave him incredible support last year.”

Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing Team

Gresini rider Alex Marquez also believes Martin’s current form was reminiscent of his Ducati heydays, when Martin and Bagnaia were operating on a different level to the rest of the field.

Marquez said he was particularly impressed by how his countryman regained confidence on the Aprilia after undergoing multiple surgeries during an injury-hit 2025 season.

"It is impressive," he said. "When you see him riding, you see that he goes without fear, with his heart wide open," he added.

"And for someone who has hurt himself so badly, so many times, it is something strange. The normal thing would be to see him riding a little more rigidly on the bike. 

“Instead, you see that he has enormous confidence, the same [confidence] he had in 2023 or 2024. So, we can only congratulate him, because he is doing a great job.”

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