Home hero Ai Ogura strong at Motegi, “but not on the MotoGP bike - yet”
Ai Ogura doubts home knowledge will help at Motegi, but believes hot conditions could provide an advantage in the MotoGP flyaways.
Forced to withdraw from last year’s home Grand Prix after the Sprint, Ai Ogura again heads to Motegi recovering from a hand injury.
But while last year’s damage was sustained at the previous Misano round, the Trackhouse Aprilia rider has had a month to recover from this summer's training accident.
The Assen winner missed Aragon and Misano after surgery for a fracture near his left thumb, returning last time at the Red Bull Ring.
After a pair of fourth places in Austria, Ogura will seek a strong result in his final Motegi appearance before joining the factory Yamaha team in 2027.
“I’m happy to be in Japan of course, but on a bike - no matter where I am - I’m always giving my 100%,” Ai Ogura said ahead of this weekend’s race.
“My Qualifying ended in Q1 last year, so… On the Moto2 bike I was quite strong in Motegi but not on the MotoGP bike - yet.”
Ogura stood on the podium in his final three home grands prix as a Moto2 rider, winning in 2022 before finishing runner-up in 2023 and 2024.
"Hot conditions can be an advantage"
While he sees little home advantage during the upcoming Asian rounds, Ogura is hoping the conditions play to his strengths.
“All the MotoGP riders have enough experience, even on Asian GP circuits, so I don’t think this can be an advantage for me," he said.
“But there will be a lot of hot races, which is something I like - so, the hot conditions can be an advantage for me.”
However, extreme heat is more likely at Mandalika and Sepang than Motegi and Phillip Island.
Ogura, who has slipped to sixth in the world championship, claimed six podiums in eight races before his training accident.
“Japan is an important race for the SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team because it’s the home race for Ai,” said team principal Davide Brivio.
“We are happy to have had a chance to get him back before this race, in Austria, as a good preparation for this round.
“We know there will be a lot of attention on Ai and we’ll try to give him the best support we can for this round.”
Although not injured, team-mate Raul Fernandez has also been absent from the MotoGP podium since Silverstone, where he won the grand prix.
“The track is really nice,” Fernandez said of Motegi. “It’s something similar to Misano but, in Misano, the grip level is quite low, the grip level here is a little bit higher, which makes me enjoy riding the bike more.
“For me, the nicest part of the track is turn six, seven, eight and ten. I really enjoy it, it’s more flowing, but I also enjoy the stop and go parts.
“The most difficult corner is probably turn 11 because you have to brake later, not forget that you have a long straight coming and you need to prepare the exit well.”
Brivio added: “We are coming from a few difficult races with Raul but, usually, the Asian tour is something positive, so we hope to be able to reverse the trend with him.”
Fernandez is seventh in the world championship, 19 points behind Ogura.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
