MELANDRI SAYS APRILIA MUST OFFER FERNANDEZ INCENTIVES FOR TEAM ORDERS

Aprilia’s hopes of using team orders to strengthen its MotoGP title challenge have prompted a warning from former rider Marco Melandri: asking Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez to help the factory team may require a substantial financial incentive—or a promise about his future.

Jorge Martin leads the championship by two points over Marc Marquez, while Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi is third, 46 points behind Martin. The team did not build on its advantage over Ducati in Indonesia, where Marquez won the Sprint. Fernandez collided with Bezzecchi on the opening lap, costing Aprilia valuable points and renewing debate over whether its satellite riders should be asked to support the title contenders.

Trackhouse riders Fernandez and Ai Ogura are well behind in the standings, trailing Martin by 119 and 96 points respectively. Aprilia technical director Fabiano Sterlacchini has hinted that team orders could be considered, and Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi expects Aprilia to use them in the coming races. Fernandez’s agent has said the rider would comply if asked.

Melandri, speaking on Ciacchiere da Box, questioned why Aprilia appeared to be discussing the issue only after the Indonesian race. “As a rider, I’ll tell you, it’s annoying. It’s called the riders’ standings, so it’s only fair that the rider earns it,” he said. But he also recognised the team’s position: “I’ve got an opportunity I can’t miss, so I have to do everything I can.”

He argued that Aprilia should have planned ahead at a circuit where it expected to be strong. Letting Martin through, he said, could have earned him nine more points—an advantage that might matter at the end of the season. “The only solution is to come to an agreement and manage the race prizes,” Melandri said, so a rider who yields can still benefit financially.

He was unsure whether Fernandez would accept an order without something meaningful in return. Describing him as fiery and instinctive, Melandri said the relationship could become difficult when a satellite rider is competing against the factory team. Aprilia might need to offer “something significant at the official level for the future” or an immediate financial reward, he said. A factory-team seat could be among the promises, though Melandri did not claim that such an offer had been made.

For Aprilia, the Indonesia incident has made the question of cooperation more urgent. Melandri’s view is that any request for Fernandez to put the team’s title ambitions ahead of his own race must be agreed in advance—and backed by a reward that gives him a reason to do so.