Jorge Martin needs to score 14 points ꧑at this weekend’s MotoGP Soidarity Grand Prix of Barcelona in order to be crowned champion for the first time.

It’s a straightforward task for a rider w😼ho has finished all but three races inside the top-two positions in the second half of 2024 — on paper, at least.

The cool conditions in Barcelona𝄹, as well as the low grip of 🐻the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, are clear hurdles set up for a rider in a position such as Martin’s to trip over at the moment where there was nothing to be gained and everything to be lost.

So, was Martin struggling to stay calm in ✨practice in Barcelona? “No,” he said.

“For sure I’m a bit mo🧜re nervous, but it’s completely 🍷normal. But I want to focus like a normal weekend.

“Actually, I’m really calm: my family is here, my friends are here, so I can relax with them in the evening, an𓂃d disconnect a bit more than maybe in the Asian tour. So, I’m happy about this.

“I think the most difficult thing is tha🌟t we are racing in Montmelo in a date that we never raced [here]. So, we are not used to Montmelo in these conditions, so it’s a bit more difficult: less grip, less confidence, and this maybe in my position is a ✤bit worse.”

If there was any point where Martin seemed to show some nerves, it was towards the end of Practice when he entered pit lane between time attack runꦜs and called over his crew chief Daniele Romagnoli with a series of fairly animated gestureﷺs.

Martin explained: “There is a lot of noisไe in the paddock, so when you want to call somebody you only can make some gestures. So, it seems like I was agit🐈ated — I was, a bit — but it’s more that I wanted to speak with Daniele [Romagnoli], but I couldn’t.

“Normally, he’s there always, but🐻 [this time] he wasn’t. I want everything the same as always, and th🔯is wasn’t, so that’s why I was a bit nervous.

“Then Gino [Borsoi, Pramac team manager] tried to take me [to Romagnoli], and it was even 🅘worse — ‘Don’t touch me’. I𒆙 want to keep it normal, keep it the same.”

Bagnaia: “Jorge absolutely has to do something wrong…”

Martin’s only remaining championship rival, ꧅Francesco Bagnaia, agreed with Martin that the Spaniard is handling the pressure well 𝕴so far, and offered his own experience in 2022 as a reference.

“I w🐭ant to say that, in 2022 when🌼 it was my first title, I arrived here in a similar situation as Jorge [Martin],” Bagnaia said.

“I arrived with 23 points of gap, and without🎐 the Sprint. So, my goal was to finish 14th, and I was very under pressure, I finished th🌄e race ninth.

“It’s difficult to manage, and I think he did a good job because he finished fifth, he almost crashed twice bu🙈t he remained on track, so I think he did a good job. He tested many tyres, and it’s normal to💞 be under pressure when you’re fighting for a title.

“Right now, in my situation, I just have to win, so I’m in a different situation, and it’s similar to when I was in 2022, recovering 91 points — when you are in that situation that y♋ou have to win, it’s easier to remain calm, because it’s the only way possible.

“Right⛎ now I feel better, but I’m jealous and I would like to be in his situation.”

Ultimately, Bagnaia is counting on misfortune for Martin in or༒der to be crowned World Champion for the thiཧrd time.

“Jorge absolutely has to do something wrong to make me win, I think,” he said. “Because, even if I win, he still has a l✤ot of margin𓂃, so he will have to do something wrong.”

Marc Marquez: “I don’t see that Martin is nervous…”

Marc Marquez also concurred, and said that🥂 it’s better for Martin to make mistakes in practice than later on 💯in the weekend.

“I don't see that [Jorge] Martin is nervous,” Marquez said. “Of𒁃 course, he's pushing and he's trying to find the limits and it's better to find on the practice.

“But it's normal that when you are fighting for the world championship and o🍷nly in 24 laps of the race you can be the world champion or not.

“It's more difficult to ride, and e♈specially when you are in the position of Martin because you only can lose and Pecco only can win.

“So Pecco is doing what he needs to dom that is riding super fast as🦩 he always did here in Montmelo.

“And in my experience, I remember that feeling in 2013 fighting against [Jorge] Lorenzo, who was already fou✤r times world champion.

“So yeah, it was not easy. I was 20-years-old. Martin has more experience in MotoGP and he can manage in a good wa🦂y.”