Ai Ogura gives a critical assessment of his first 12 race weekends as a MotoGP rider with Trackhouse Racing.
MotoGP rookie, Ai Ogura, says there have been 'no good points, only challenges', in his first 12 race weekends in the premier class.
The Japanese rider signed for the Trackhouse Racing squad midway through the 2024 season and made his debut in MotoGP on an Aprilia RS-GP.
Despite an impressive weekend at the Thai Grand Prix at the start of the season, Ogura's results have declined, and he has not had a top ten finish since the French Grand Prix.
"There were no good points, only challenges," he said.
"In the first two or three races, I didn’t fully understand the bike in a positive sense, and pushing it to its limits worked in my favour.
"From there, my understanding deepened, and I started to see aspects I shouldn’t have noticed.
"Compared to the early races, my results haven’t been as strong, but I understand that progress must be made step by step to move upwards.
"So, I’m not overly concerned.”
Ogura points out that Trackhouse team boss Davide Brivio has put no pressure on him to perform this year and has urged him not to pay attention to results.
"[Brivio told me to] don’t worry about the results this year," he said.
"The team is taking care to ensure I don’t ride under pressure, and I’m just doing what I can."
After 12 race weekends, Ogura finds himself 16th in the MotoGP World Championship on 51 points and with a best result of fourth in the Thai Sprint Race at the start of the season.
The Japanese rider is also second in the race for Rookie of the Year, as Fermin Aldeguer sits tenth in the Championship on 97 points.