Jorge Martin is a ‘danger for the opposition’ after ‘clever’ Qatar MotoGP

Jorge Martin won the opening sprint MotoGP race of the season after breaking the lap record in qualifying.

But in the grand prix it was 2023 title rival Francesco Bagnaia who came out on top as Martin was also beaten to second spot by Brad Binder.

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Martin was never out of contention though, as he managed to set a very strong pace while conserving his tyres.

The Spaniard set his best lap of the race with just one lap remaining, and it’s one of the reasons why Crafar believes Martin could end the year as world champion as it demonstrated a very ‘clever’ side to his riding.

“Jorge really impressed me,” said Crafar on the After the Flag show. “I knew he could do that in the sprint even though he had more trouble in the sprint. 

“When I went to his debrief he was worried about the grand prix and I thought he was going to drop like a stone at the end and not be able to manage that tyre.

“I really thought Marc [Marquez] would beat him to the last spot on the podium. Marc didn’t beat him.

“When it came down to the fight Jorge managed it so well. He did the fastest lap of his race with one lap to go. 

“We already knew Jorge was super fast, an absolute natural, but tonight he proved he is clever. That package means danger for the opposition.” 

Crafar was also glowing in his praise for KTM and Binder, who he expects to win races if the Austrian manufacturer can provide Binder with slightly better edge grip.

“KTM has a made step sword in all areas,” said Crafar. “I’m talking about the engine; that engine is fast! Acceleration, torque, top speed and then they have improved the front-end of the bike and Brad has something he can fight the others with.

“The aero is better. Clearly, now they are only missing a bit of drive grip off the corner to get that tyre to hook up and go.

“If they can improve that just a little bit then Brad is going to win. He will! I fully believe that.”