Reigning MotoGP champion Jorge Martín returns after a season of injuries and setbacks. From Aprilia’s struggles to a renewed championship fight, discover how Martín’s comeback could reshape the 2025 season.
The story of Jorge Martín’s 2025 MotoGP season reads like a motorsport drama no scriptwriter could have conjured.
Fresh from conquering the MotoGP world in 2024 with Pramac Ducati, becoming the first independent team rider to seize the crown, Martín was at the highest point of his career, when Aprilia came calling. They offered him the keys to their championship hopes with a two-year deal.
Then came Malaysia.
Just days into pre-season testing on the RS-GP25, disaster struck. A brutal crash left Martín with fractures to his right hand and foot. The reigning champion’s title defense was stopped before it even began. Three races passed without him. A comeback at the Qatar Grand Prix ended in yet another crash, breaking his wrist and ribs. It was as if fate was conspiring to keep him off the grid.
Racing Against Time
With Martín sidelined for months, questions grew about when, or even if, the reigning champion would return. Medical reports in late June 2025 suggested his scaphoid and rib injuries were healing well but not fully consolidated, forcing him to miss even the German round, originally targeted for his return.
Thanks to a newly introduced regulation allowing injured riders an extra test day before rejoining the grid, Martín completed an extensive session at Misano, logging 64 laps on the RS-GP25 without any accident. With doctors satisfied, Aprilia confirmed Martín would attempt his return at the Czech Grand Prix at Brno, subject to a final medical clearance on July 17, 2025.
The Chaos Surrounding His Contract
His rapid rise through the ranks – including victory in the 2018 Moto3 World Championship, strong results in the Moto2 tour, and the historic achievements as the first independent team world champion in MotoGP in 2024 – couldn’t put an end to the uncertainty around his future, following the grueling period of injury and absence.
So far, his time with Aprilia has seen only one finished race in 2025.
Contractually, Martín’s predicament has been every bit as turbulent as his on-track fortunes. By mid-season, rumours swirled that Martín was seeking to activate a performance-based exit clause in his contract, potentially allowing him to leave Aprilia a year early and test the waters with other manufacturers such as Honda.
His manager, Albert Valera, fanned speculation by stating that Martín was “free of contract for 2026.”
However, in a surprise move during a press conference at Brno on July 17, 2025, Martín confirmed that he will remain with Aprilia for the 2026 season, quashing transfer rumours and signaling a recommitment to the project.
Legacy and Mental Triumph
The ability to return from successive, serious injuries, while under the intense glare of championship expectations and contract upheavals, underscores Martín’s exceptional mental resilience.
Few riders in MotoGP’s recent history have managed to overcome both injury setbacks and off-track distractions with their status and legacy as champions hanging in the balance. Martín’s persistence in coming back, especially with little to no full pre-season and after missing half a year of racing, could well cement his legacy as one of the sport’s grittiest modern icons.
What This Means for Aprilia’s Stability
Aprilia’s 2025 campaign has been marked by internal instability, not least because their marquee signing was absent for much of the year, leaving the team to rely on the newcomer Marco Bezzecchi, rookie Ai Ogura, and Raul Fernandez.
The RS-GP25’s development suffered; Bezzecchi managed some top-10 finishes, but podiums proved elusive. Martín’s return immediately boosts Aprilia’s technical and morale outlook and allows the squad to refocus on race-day performance rather than simply damage limitation.
The public recommitment by Martín to Aprilia through 2026 also provides the team with much-needed stability, ending months of transfer speculation and giving Aprilia the continuity to build for the following season. In fact, Martín’s comeback is a shot in the arm for MotoGP’s global fanbase. His rivalry with Ducati’s Pecco Bagnaia and new Ducati factory recruit Marc Márquez has been a central narrative.
The 2025 Championship, already shaped by the Marquez brothers’ duel at the top, will now instantly gain new intensity with the reigning champion’s return to fitness and form. Fans can expect renewed interest, viewership spikes, and reinvigorated team and manufacturer rivalries, with Martín likely to play the wildcard spoiler in the season’s second half.
What Should We Expect Next?
Looking ahead, the remainder of 2025 is set up as a redemption arc. With nearly half the season still to run post-Brno, a fit Martín can target podiums later in the year as he regains race sharpness and adapts further to the Aprilia package. The physical and psychological hurdles are formidable, but Martín’s track record suggests he will approach every round with the aggressive, never-say-die attitude that defined his rise through Moto3, Moto2, and his banner year in 2024. Now clear of contract drama, his commitment to Aprilia is already setting the stage for a renewed, stable championship campaign into 2026.
Martín’s comeback, then, is about far more than just returning to the saddle. It’s a test of resilience, loyalty, and legacy, for both the rider and Aprilia, and a dramatic variable in MotoGP’s feverishly competitive championship battle. Keywords: Jorge Martín, MotoGP 2025 Championships, Aprilia Racing, MotoGP 2025 season, Jorge Martín comeback, Czech Grand Prix Brno
