SCHWANTZ SAYS MARTIN SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE PATIENT AGAINST MARQUEZ

Kevin Schwantz believes Jorge Martin should have shown more patience in his Australian Grand Prix Sprint battle with Marc Marquez, rather than repeatedly trying to force a pass. The 1993 world champion shared his assessment during the rain delay at Phillip Island, after Martin’s crash had ended his weekend.

Martin passed Marquez on lap three, but ran wide two laps later and gave the position back. He tried again on laps six and eight without making either move stick, then crashed at Hayshed, suffering a non-displaced fracture of the distal radius near his wrist. He is due to receive treatment in the coming days. Aprilia team boss Massimo Rivola does not expect him to race at next weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix, although Martin has not been officially ruled out.

Schwantz said he would have stayed behind Marquez and waited for a better opportunity. “Maybe sometimes, I feel like as a rider, I would have stayed and followed a little bit,” he said. If Marquez made a mistake, Schwantz explained, he would take advantage but then assess the situation, conserve his tyres and energy, and aim to attack late in the race. He also noted that another race was scheduled for the following day.

The American said Martin’s repeated attempts looked like those of a rider unfamiliar with running at the front. “If you’re a world champion, you should know what to do and how to handle those situations,” Schwantz said, adding that Martin might have believed the early opening was his only chance. His advice was to “wait and time it, set it up” for a final-lap move or a pass on the run to the finish.

Martin won the premier-class title in 2024 and has nine MotoGP victories. His crash did not cost him further points because the race was cancelled due to adverse weather. Marquez now leads the standings by 10 points; if Martin misses Sepang, Marquez could have his first championship match point as early as Qatar.