According to Jorge Martin, Moto2 rider Fermin Aldeguer is “ready” for MotoGP and is still aiming for a spot on the factory Ducati squad.
Jorge Martin feels his countryman Fermin Aldeguer is ready for MotoGP, citing reports that the teenager will join Pramac Ducati in 2025.
Despite finishing third in the Moto2 standings the previous year, behind Pedro Acosta and Tony Arbolino, Aldeguer put on an incredible comeback to win the last four races while riding the Boscoscuro chassis.
At the team launch in Bahrain on Wednesday, current Pramac star Martin, who competed against Francesco Bagnaia for the title until the last round of the previous season, stated:
“I believe Aldeguer is prepared. He had previously demonstrated promise at the end of the previous year. He now has a lengthy season to prove it and compete for the championship.
But as of right now, he is Moto2’s most formidable rider. I’m not sure if he’s signed with MotoGP yet, but if he has, this would undoubtedly boost his confidence going into the season.
Should Martin or his new partner Franco Morbidelli sign an Aldeguer contract, Pramac will lose both players at the end of the current campaign.
Although there were suspicions that Martin might have switched to Enea Bastianini if he had won last year’s championship, Martin has never disguised his ambition to join the factory Ducati squad. However, he claims it is too early to tell what his future holds.
“We must wait; it’s still too early. Bagnaia ought to be confirmed [at Ducati] shortly, in my opinion. Martin stated of his championship competitor, “He deserves it.”
“I believe I’ve demonstrated my abilities, and my objective is to have a strong start to the season and demonstrate my readiness to join the official Ducati squad.” If not, we’ll see.
Martin momentarily stole Bagnaia’s lead in the 2023 title race thanks to an outstanding second half of the season, but the Italian rallied to win his second straight title by 39 points.
“We were quick last season. Regarding 2024, Martin stated, “We have to maintain the same pace, without a doubt. However, there are several aspects—mentality, physical aspect, and setup—that we may work on improving.
“We are working hard in every area, and to compete for a title, we must give it our all in each one. Let’s then cross our fingers and pray for a little luck to obtain it.
“We can win it,” he continued. But I don’t think we should become fixated on the outcome. We must stay concentrated on the procedure, go through each race one by one, and then determine whether we can prevail in the end.
Bagnaia, Martin, and fellow factory GP24 rider Bastianini all had successful preseasons, but the #89 was uninvited to hear certain remarks made on the last day of the race in Qatar.
It’s not something I have any control over. The engineers are the main focus. Regarding the vibrations, he remarked, “So I guess they will figure it out.” “I have faith in myself. I believe there was a problem with the bike that didn’t arise during the competition. I’m hoping that after a few tweaks, everything will work out.
Next weekend, March 8–10, at Lusail, is the Qatar season opener.
Martin finished first in the sprint race in November of last year, but grip problems caused him to finish eleventh in the grand prix.