His ambitions were high, especially after what he accomplished yesterday, so it was a shame that Jorge Martin's Saturday immediately turned out to be an uphill climb, because he fell twice in qualifying, and had to settle for the second row. But, in the Sprint, the Pramac standard bearer took to the track with a knife between his teeth and managed a third position.
So the world champion can consider the glass half full, despite the many obstacles that presented themselves at the start of the day.
"It's too bad about qualifying," Jorge said, "Unfortunately, I went over the limit and ended up falling. Maybe I was too aggressive in the corners and made a mistake. I then returned to the track with the soft tire on the second bike, and I lacked confidence. In fact, I ended up falling again."
Nevertheless, Martin managed to secure the second row.
"The resilience that has been with me since last year carried over into qualifying. With a soft I don't like, I reached the second row. The fact is that, in the race, at turn one, I lost three positions. Unfortunately, I struggled to stop the Ducati. And, to make matters worse, Acosta, who was in front of me, braked really late. So I hope to make a better start tomorrow, because I could think about battling it out with Viñales."
Jorge's analysis then focuses on the race.
"I thought I could do more, but I think I worked well on the pace. For Sunday, the tire choice will be the most difficult aspect, because both the medium and soft are good. Today, I managed in the race but, towards the finish, I felt some vibrations."
Speaking of vibrations, these don't seem to be new.
"In the second lap, I felt the same vibrations as in Qatar, but they decreased towards the final. But I want to be optimistic for tomorrow because, if we start more calmly, we can manage the situation better. The fact is that we have to solve the vibration problem, because it's not the best to live with it for the whole season."
His last thoughts were about the tires.
"I worked with the soft, while Maverick and Pecco focused on the medium. If we start with the same aggressiveness like today, it won't be the best to arrive at the finish. Obviously, I'll try to do my best, even if the long race will be complicated." Tomorrow, long race. However, I want to be optimistic."
The fact remains that Martin is still at the head of the World Championship.
"I'm not thinking about the World Championship, only about improving myself compared to last season, trying to be consistent and always in close contact with the podium or in the top four places."