Aprilia and Jorge Martin once again find themselves as a focal point in MotoGP’s silly season – for the second year in succession. Not even a year ago, Jorge Martin signed to Aprilia in what appeared to look like the start of a happy relationship. However, despite missing the majority of 2025 so far, Jorge Martin has seemingly made it clear that he will be intending to leave Aprilia at the end of 2025, as announced via social media earlier today.
Martin’s expected departure means that Aprilia will now be looking to the rider market for a suitable replacement. With only a handful of riders out of contract at the end of this year, here’s who could be on Aprilia’s shopping list.
One option for the potentially open seat at Aprilia is Enea Bastianini. Bastianini has made it no secret that he is struggling with the KTM this year, dubbing the British Grand Prix as the ‘worst of his career’. The Italian was one of the riders touted for a seat with Aprilia before he signed with Tech 3 KTM at the end of 2024. Bastianini’s smooth and generally more flowing riding style should suit the Aprilia if he were to leave KTM at the end of the season.
Another possibility is Luca Marini. The current HRC rider has garnered considerable praise from Japan due to his approach to developing Honda’s MotoGP project over the past two years. Marini has, so far, had a steady yet consistent start to his 2025 campaign, picking up points at most race weekends this year. With experience of Ducati and Honda, Marini would be a safe pair of hands should he sign with Aprilia for 2026.
The third option for Aprilia comes in-house. Ai Ogura has looked incredibly strong since stepping into the premier class at the start of this season. The reigning Moto2 World champion has more often than not been the top Aprilia over the line so far this season, and up until Silverstone was the top Aprilia in the championship. Moving Ogura into the factory team from Trackhouse would be the smoothest of three possible transitions, given that he would have had a year’s experience with the RS-GP come 2026.
Aprilia have now proven that they can still win races, even without a MotoGP world champion on their bike. As such, there isn’t as much of a desperate need to sign an already established front-running rider, meaning they could choose to go down a more rider development-focused route with Ogura. If Ogura is chosen, could that then open up the door for one of the current Moto2 contenders, such as Canet, Gonzalez or Dixon to step into the premier class with Trackhouse?
We could even see Aprilia go left field and choose none of the above. Rumours have suggested that Pedro Acosta is unhappy with the current performance of the KTM. Acosta was previously linked to a Honda switch, could he instead fill the seat that Jorge Martin will vacate?
Only time will tell which direction Aprilia choose, but their win at the British Grand Prix couldn’t have come at a better time. Now proven to still be a winning package, Aprilia will now be able to approach the rider market with some degree of leverage in rider negotiations.
