MotoGP Valencia: ‘Level is super high, Bagnaia the reference’ - Martin

Jorge Martin turned his fifth MotoGP pole position of the season into his fourth podium after taking third at Valencia on Sunday.

The Prima Pramac rider looked to be on for a strong second, behind winner Alex Rins, in the final race of 2022 until Brad Binder arrived on the RC-16 to spoil the show on the penultimate lap.

“Yeah, for sure we end the season in a really good level,” Martin said after the podium celebrations. “Since Silverstone I was almost always fighting for a podium and with the potential to win the races but for sure we need to learn from mistakes. Try to take the positives and experience.

“This weekend was great. For sure, I thought that my pace could be much better but I was stuck behind Alex and I saw that the front tyre wasn’t working well then I started to lose the front. I tried to leave like half a second to try to pass the laps and then when I tried again to push a little bit I was with no grip.

“I had three riders behind me putting a lot of pressure so it was also difficult. I put everything on the track to not lose at least the podium here in the last race and finally the third position is really good.

“I think my level is super high, also making some records during all the season so this is positive. We improve a lot from the beginning to now, so I’m full focus and committed that we need to keep this level for next season.”

While Ducati celebrated Pecco Bagnaia’s rider title alongside the triple crown of constructors and team - for the factory Lenovo outfit - Martin is confident the turbulence of early 2022 has been put to one side, with late-season progress and the promise of Tuesday’s test heralding a competitive new season on the horizon.

“I want to congratulate Pecco,” Martin said of his