Jorge Martin feels he and Pramac have been fighting “against the world” in MotoGP this year, with his rival Francesco Bagnaia racing for a factory Ducati team that is “built to win”.
Martin is on the verge of winning the MotoGP world title having carved out a 24-point lead with just 37 on offer in next week’s Barcelona season finale.
Satellite teams have traditionally been at a massive disadvantage with respect to factory squads in the past, but Ducati has overhauled the way bike manufacturers compete in MotoGP in the last few years by forging a closer relationship with teams it supplies bikes to.
As part of its new methodology, Martin is contracted directly to Ducati and rides the same specification of GP24 as Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini in the factory team, thus offering him parity of equipment.
However, while the lines between satellite and factory teams have become blurred in recent years, Pramac remains an independent outfit and doesn’t have the same resources as that of a manufacturer.
It’s why the significance of winning a title against a factory rider is not lost on Martin, who could wrap up the championship as early as the sprint race in Barcelona.
“He's in a different moment, he's been in MotoGP for six years, he's in an official team, he has everything, his environment, ready to win,” said the Spaniard.
“I have a team of 12 people who fight alone against the world, and with that to achieve what we have achieved, seven sprint [wins], three victories and 30 podiums [15 in races and another 15 in sprints], I can't ask for more.
"[The success] is not because of me, it's because of my people, my environment, my team, all the people around me, I just want to achieve it for them, so that they can enjoy it, that's what fills me [with joy] and excites me."
Bagnaia has established himself as one of the best riders of the generation after winning back-to-back titles in 2022 and '23 with Ducati.
The Italian has put up a strong fight against Martin this year, winning 10 of the 19 grands prix so far and scoring six further victories in the sprints.
Martin stressed that winning the 2024 title would carry extra value just because he would have defeated an in-form - if error-prone - Bagnaia to the crown.
“It is a pride to reach this point of the season fighting for the championship,” he said. “It's a pride to have a rival like Bagnaia, because this makes me better.
“That Pecco is at his highest level and being able to fight with him, to be able to push him to the limit, makes what we are both doing more valuable.
“I've won seven times this year, true, but it will be very difficult in the last grand prix to beat a Pecco in the form he is in now.
“We'll see how the weekend develops, it will be in colder conditions, which usually suits me better. With a lot of heat it's a perfect condition for Bagnaia. There will be more chances of failing in lower temperatures, but the risk will be the same for both of us.
“It's always difficult to play for a title in the last event, anything can happen. But I arrive confident and believing that I can achieve it.”
