As Jorge Martin battles a string of injuries that have sidelined his MotoGP season debut with Aprilia, 500cc legend Kevin Schwantz has offered advice on recovery.
500cc world champion Kevin Schwantz has offered advice for reigning champion Jorge Martin, who has continued to struggle after multiple injuries ahead of the 2025 MotoGP season.
Martin was set to make his debut with Aprilia this season, but after a number of incidents, was forced to step back from the season as he healed. He originally crashed in Sepang during pre-season testing for his Italian team, injuring his right hand and left foot. Another crash shortly after saw him hurt his left wrist, too, bringing the start of his season to an end before it even began.
“Blows are always tough,” the Spaniard posted to Instagram. “But when they come one after another, the impact multiplies. This time, they have been especially hard, both physically and mentally, and for the first time in my life, they have made me miss the season’s opening race.”
Schwantz has gone through similar, with him breaking his collar bone in 1986, the first of many such issues in his career.
“Maybe I just need to take him aside for five minutes and say, you know what you need to do now is get back to 100% fitness. So take your time,” he said in COTA. “You’re still young. When you get back to 100%, get back on the bike.
“Remember, when you get back on the bike, just because you’re 100% doesn’t mean you’re going to go straight to a win. You have to rebuild that speed. That’s something that, to get to where you had to win that world championship last year, has been going on since the Red Bull Rookie Cup.”
Jorge Martin, Pramac Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Martin has already missed the first two race weekends of the season and will be missing the next race at COTA. He is expected to be watching from the sidelines, but he won’t be sitting over the tank of any machinery until he’s fit to do so. His time to recovery is uncertain.
“Those weeks without being able to leave the house were killing me,” he admitted only a few days ago. “I don’t know when I’ll return, but I’m already in the process. I’m eating well, I can laugh, I can cough – because before the rib hurt.
“I never thought that an injury could last so long. Portimao was very hard, but after a month I was already on the bike. But now it’s been six weeks and still the return to MotoGP is far away.”
