Martin: Pecco move ‘aggressive’, contact with Marc ‘was racing, let’s go for it’

Martin catapulted himself back into the mix with victory in the Valencia sprint, meaning Bagnaia, who finished fifth, holds a slender lead of 14 points.

The Pramac rider put all his cards on the table and was keen to make every overtake count.

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That includes the move he put on Bagnaia for second position on the opening lap, and although it didn’t come off initially, Martin got past at the very next corner.

“Was a nice race, a nice start and the first lap I just tried to recover a lot of positions,” Martin told MotoGP.com. “I went inside Johann at turn one and then Pecco I tried the move in corner ten. 

“He went back to my position a bit aggressively but the next corner I tried again. I have nothing to lose so I will go 100% with every move. I think my chances are winning or crashing.”

While contact was avoided in his battle with Bagnaia, that was not the case when Marc Marquez lunged to the inside of Martin just before mid-race distance.

Martin slightly left the door open after Brad Binder and Maverick Vinales compromised their exit from turn five, but Martin stayed ahead despite the front tyre of Marquez hitting his left shoulder. 

“I felt it but it was racing,” said Martin who embraced Marquez after the race. “Let’s go for it.”

In terms of his championship fight, Martin is only looking at himself and winning the grand prix. 

Martin said: “I think that we, as a team, want this result but it will be difficult to get it. 

“But I feel confident that we can win the race. This is super important and let’s see if Pecco suffers a bit and is a bit more in the back. For me it is win or win.”