Martín tries to calm Aprilia after the crash in Hungary: “We must stay together”
Jorge Martín arrived in Brno with a clear message for Aprilia: the incident in the first corner of the Hungarian Grand Prix must remain a lesson, not a crack that will divide the team in the middle of the fight for the top of the MotoGP championship. The Spanish Aprilia Racing rider, the 2024 world champion, accepted responsibility for the crash at the Balaton Park circuit, apologized to the riders who were affected by it and stressed that his intention had not been to make a dangerous move. According to MotoGP’s official announcement, the FIM MotoGP stewards’ panel assessed that Martín was at fault for the incident and handed him a double long-lap penalty, which he must serve in Sunday’s Czech Grand Prix race. This means the sporting damage from Hungary continues in Brno, where Aprilia is trying to prevent one wrong moment from growing into a more serious problem inside the factory garage.
The stewards’ decision and the crash that changed the race in Hungary
The incident happened on June 7, 2026, at the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix main race, in the first corner of the Balaton Park circuit. According to MotoGP’s report, Martín lost control of the front end of the Aprilia in the braking zone, after which he fell and triggered a chain crash that also involved Marco Bezzecchi from the factory Aprilia team, Raúl Fernández from Trackhouse MotoGP Team, Fermín Aldeguer from Gresini Racing and Fabio Di Giannantonio from VR46 Racing Team. MotoGP announced that Martín, Bezzecchi, Fernández and Aldeguer were out of the race, while Di Giannantonio continued after the incident, but dropped down the order. The stewards’ official decision was a double long-lap for Martín in the next race, which in practice is one of the tougher sporting penalties that can be served during the race itself.
For Aprilia, the moment was especially painful because three motorcycles from its circle were affected in the same crash: two factory bikes, Martín’s and Bezzecchi’s, as well as Fernández’s Trackhouse motorcycle. In its official race report, Aprilia described the race as a “black Sunday” at Balaton Park, stating that both factory riders were out already in the first corner. The only more important result for the Noale marque in that race was delivered by Ai Ogura, who finished fourth for Trackhouse, but that could not soften the impression that Aprilia had missed a major opportunity on a weekend in which it had strong pace. MotoGP stated in its report that Martín and Bezzecchi had to undergo medical checks after the fall and that no visible fractures were reported, which, given the speed and the number of riders involved, was the most important news after the race.
Rivola’s public criticism opened the question of relations inside the team
Massimo Rivola, Aprilia’s MotoGP boss, did not try to soften his rider’s responsibility after the race. According to statements carried by MotoGP, Rivola said that Martín had quickly apologized to everyone in the team, but added that the situation was difficult to digest and that a rider of his calibre must not make such a mistake. Motorsport.com also reported Rivola’s assessment that Aprilia “looked stupid” in Hungary because three of its motorcycles ended up in the same chain accident, and already in the first corner. Such a public appearance was unusually sharp for an internal team situation, especially because Martín and Bezzecchi are at the same time rivals in the title fight and colleagues in the same factory project.
Rivola, according to MotoGP, accepted that Martín was the first to try to repair the damage with an apology, but he insisted on the safety dimension. His message was that the first corner requires extra caution because riders already take major risks in MotoGP anyway, and an unnecessary additional risk can have serious consequences. According to Motorsport.com’s report, Rivola did not reduce the problem only to the configuration of the track or the conditions of the surface, but emphasized that riders in Sunday’s race already know the layout of the corners and the level of grip well. In doing so, he practically rejected the interpretation that the incident was primarily a consequence of circumstances, although after the race there was discussion in the paddock about the surface, braking and the ride-height devices used at the start.
Martín accepted the mistake, but rejected the idea of an intentionally dangerous move
In Brno, ahead of the Czech Grand Prix weekend from June 19 to 21, 2026, Martín tried to calm the tone of the discussion. According to the report from the paddock by Spain’s AS, he said he first wanted to apologize to Aprilia and to all the riders who were involved because nobody deserves a Sunday like that. He stressed that he had spoken with his colleagues and that he wanted to learn from the mistake so that a similar situation would not happen again. At the same time, he explained that, from his point of view, he was not trying to overtake aggressively, but after contact with the brake he lost control, had to release the pressure and then found himself in a situation in which he could no longer avoid the fall and contact with others.
The Spaniard, according to AS, admitted that the asphalt in Balaton Park’s first corner was very poor, but explicitly emphasized that he was not using that as an excuse because the conditions were the same for everyone. That distinction is important for understanding his position: Martín is not trying to shift responsibility onto the track, but he claims that his move was not an intentional or consciously dangerous action. In the same conversation, he said that he understood Rivola’s anger and frustration because the team boss saw three Aprilias on the ground at the same moment. Nevertheless, his basic message was that he is the first one who does not want to fall, and even less to bring down other riders, especially after the injuries and difficult period he has gone through in recent seasons.
The penalty in Brno comes at an awkward moment
The double long-lap in Brno further complicates Martín’s attempt to get back into rhythm after Hungary. According to MotoGP, the Czech Grand Prix is the ninth round of the season, and it is held at the Brno circuit, one of the best-known and most traditional venues on the motorcycle championship calendar. Crash.net reported that Martín was not fully physically fit ahead of the weekend and that medical checks after the crash in Hungary showed contusions to his back and right foot, but no fractures. The rider himself said that physically he would not be at one hundred percent, but that he wanted to be mentally ready and turn that part into added value for the weekend in Czechia.
The sporting effect of the penalty could be significant, especially because a long-lap in MotoGP is served by riding through a specially marked wider line that usually costs the rider more time than a normal passage through a corner. A double penalty means Martín will have to leave the optimal racing line twice and rejoin the race, which can be decisive in the fight for positions in a group. According to AS, Martín accepted the penalty as something he had to serve, without publicly assessing whether it was fair or unfair. His goal in Brno, as reported by the same source, will be to get the maximum out of the weekend despite the sporting burden he carries from Hungary.
Aprilia’s title fight now also has a psychological dimension
The Hungarian crash was not important only because of one race. According to the standings after Balaton Park published by Crash.net, Bezzecchi retained the championship lead with 180 points, while Martín remained second with 160 points. That means Aprilia’s factory riders are still right at the top of the season, but the incident has opened the question of how the team will manage the rivalry within its own garage. At the same time, Marc Márquez, with victory in Hungary, according to MotoGP’s report, reached the 100th Grand Prix win of his career and further reduced the gap to the leaders, leaving Aprilia with less room for internal mistakes.
Bezzecchi arrived in Brno as the championship leader and as a directly affected party in the crash. According to AS, the Italian rider said that after the fall he felt a heavy impact on the right side of his body, especially in his arm and leg, but that the examinations were fine and that he did not expect any consequences for riding. When directly asked whether relations inside the Aprilia box could change after Balaton, he answered briefly that they would not. That statement carries weight because it reduces the room for a story about an open split, but it does not erase the fact that Aprilia will have to balance the sporting ambitions of both its riders very carefully in the next races.
Calming tensions as the first test after Balaton
Martín’s message from Brno was therefore not only a personal apology, but also an attempt to restore trust in Aprilia’s wider project. According to AS, he stressed that he is fully committed to the team and that a conflict with his own squad would make no sense because it would be harmful both to him and to Aprilia. Such wording shows that he is aware of how much Massimo Rivola’s public criticism changed the tone of the conversation after Hungary. Instead of remaining only on the sporting result, the discussion expanded to the question of trust, communication and the way in which a team protects its own riders in a moment of mistake.
On the other hand, Aprilia must maintain discipline and clear safety standards. Rivola’s criticism was sharp, but it was essentially based on the assessment that a top rider must know when the first corner requires an extra margin. Martín’s defence rests on a different nuance: the mistake happened, the consequences were major, but the move was not deliberately risky nor directed against his colleagues. Precisely that difference between responsibility and intention will be key to calming relations at Aprilia, because the team must acknowledge the seriousness of the incident while at the same time not allowing one crash to damage the entire season.
In Brno, therefore, more than lap times alone will be followed. Martín must serve the double long-lap, prove that the physical consequences from Hungary do not limit his performance and show that he can control the pressure after public criticism. Bezzecchi must defend the championship lead without entering an additional internal conflict. Aprilia, meanwhile, must show that the project which in 2026 brought its riders to the top of the standings can also withstand moments in which sporting interest, safety and emotions after an accident pull the team in different directions.
Sources:
- MotoGP.com – official decision on the double long-lap penalty for Jorge Martín after the incident in Hungary (link)
- MotoGP.com – official report from the Hungarian Grand Prix and description of the crash in the first corner (link)
- MotoGP.com – overview of key topics after Hungary and Massimo Rivola’s statements on the incident (link)
- Aprilia Racing – official team report after the race at Balaton Park (link)
- AS – Jorge Martín’s statements in Brno on the apology, the penalty, Rivola’s criticism and the circumstances of the fall (link)
- AS – Marc Bezzecchi’s statements in Brno on his physical condition and relations at Aprilia after the incident (link)
- Crash.net – information on Martín’s physical condition ahead of Brno and the context of the penalty (link)
- Crash.net – MotoGP championship standings after the Hungarian Grand Prix at Balaton Park (link)
- Motorsport.com – analysis of Rivola’s criticism and the consequences of the crash for Aprilia in Hungary (link)