The Sepang International Circuit is the stage for what is probably the most emotional day of Team Del Conca Gresini Moto3, with Jorge Martin who clinches the 2018 Moto3 World Championship with one race left in the season – Valencia, the track where one year he won his maiden race in the category.
Despite putting together an impressive tally throughout the 2018 edition of the championship, Martin had to wait for the penultimate race to clinch the ultimate prize: the 20-year-old from Madrid amassed 11 pole positions, 14 front-row starts, seven wins and nine podiums on the way to his first title as #MART1NATOR, a title that adds another important trophy to the ones already claimed by Gresini Racing with Daijiro Kato (2002) and Toni Elias (2010).
The journey of Jorge Martin with Team Del Conca Gresini began in 2017, a year in which the young Spaniard not only claimed eight podiums and one win, but also showed the potential for what turned out to be an epic 2018 season aboard his Honda NSF250RW machine.
2018 draws to a close with the sweetest taste in Martin’s mouth, despite a significant injury at Brno – very similar to the one suffered the year before – and the genuinely strong but fair rivalry with Marco Bezzecchi and with Fabio Di Giannantonio, who brought the fight to Martin at every race.
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JORGE MARTIN – 2018 MOTO3 WORLD CHAMPION “My whole life passed through my very own eyes. I come from a humble family and it wasn’t easy to get here where we are now. I would like to thank everyone who supported me and helped me grow: from the “Cuna de Campeones” to the rookies cup to obviously Gresini Racing. I saw this title almost slipping off my hands in Thailand when I thought I wouldn’t have raced, but we did and I wanna thank everyone, including my rivals. To be winning the title and taking the race win at the same time is probably the best thing in the world, so thank you once again!”
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FAUSTO GRESINI – TEAM MANAGER
“I was not expecting to win the championship here. It has been a tough race, so it’s twice as rewarding to win it here. Seven years ago we lost Marco here, so I would like to dedicate this title to him. Everyone in the team has been incredible. We are World Champions by getting the most pole positions and race wins and by winning both team and riders’ classifications. It has been a perfect season, and we could still wrap it up with Diggia’s second place!”