A world champion, crowned in 2024 after the last race of the season, a great driver, newly signed with Aprilia for the 2025, and the unluckiest driver on the current grid of this season. I’m talking about the 27 years old rider Jorge Martin.
After his triumph in Barcelona, he was ready to return on the bike for the tests at the Sepang Circuit, but during his first day he fell following a high side, suffering some fractures to his right hand and left foot. Not even a month later he jumped on the bike again, but he suffered a further injury during a training session, which involved a complex fracture of the radius, some carpal bones and a homolateral calcaneal fracture. He was hopeful yet again when he recovered in time for the fourth race of the season, but then again, he didn’t bring his lucky charm, because he fell during the race and he suffered eleven fractures to his ribs and a pneumothorax.
What was wrong with him? With his faith? With his fortune? With two wheels that had something against him? But the truth is we know what went wrong. Mistakes or simply just racing. Because we know every dynamic of every injury, every surgery he had to go through. We know what was wrong, we just don’t know why it was always him, why every time he just touched a bike he just wasn’t steady enough. Because it’s not only about what physical consequences an incident has on a driver, no, it’s always more about what mental consequences it has, what they think and live when they hit the ground and get up with pain and no hope, a broken arm, a broken leg, a broken helmet.
Devastating, a dream turned into a whole nightmare, a passion turned into a weapon, a way to heal turned into a way of harm. Because the bike is a rider’s safe place, a passion they fought for too hard to give it up. A fall doesn’t mean bad luck, but a streak of three means the worst luck. But he’s still standing, and smiling, and passionate about something that gave him all the pain of the last year. From February until now, months of injuries and recovering, trying to find the love for racing strong enough to keep him going. Because riders who suffer for months but get excited to jump on the same thing that harmed them are riders who have enough strength to be at the top of the game.
And Jorge Martin is returning on track again, after his recovering and some testing with Aprilia, for the Czech grand prix, from 18th to 20th of July. With his teammate, Marco Bezzecchi, he’s jumping on that bike like nothing ever changed and let’s hope that this time he brings along his lucky charm, a smile and steady tires.
