Jorge Martínez Salvadores (born 29 August 1962), nicknamed "Aspar", is a Spanish former professional

motorcycle racer The motorcycle sport of racing (also called moto racing and motorbike racing) includes motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Other categories include hill climbs, drag racing and ...

and racing team manager. He competed in the Grand Prix

road racing Road racing is a North American term to describe motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held on a race track, closed circuit—generally, a purpose-built racing facility—or on a street circuit that uses temporarily c ...

world championships from 1982 to 1997. Martínez is one of the most successful motorcycle racers in

Grand Prix motorcycle racing Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

history with 22 Grand Prix victories to his name in the 80 cc class and a further 15 wins in the 125 cc class. After retiring from active competition, Martínez became a successful motorcycle racing team owner. In 2019, Martínez was inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame.

Motorcycle racing career

Martínez was born in

Alzira, Valencia Alzira (; ) is a city and municipality of 49.000 inhabitants (62,094 floating population) in Valencia, eastern Spain. It is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Ribera Alta in the province of Valencia. The city is the heart of the second largest ...

, Spain. He entered his first Grand Prix in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

. Between 1986 and 1988, he claimed a total of four

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

in these two categories, three times in the 80cc event and once at 125 cc. In 1988 he achieved the ‘double’, taking both crowns that year. His nickname was "Aspar", a Spanish link with the shoe making industry which was given to him as a direct result of his father’s occupation as a cobbler.

Racing team owner

After his competitive career had ended in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, he went on to create and manage the

Aspar Team Aspar Team (formerly Ángel Nieto Team) is a Grand Prix motorcycle racing team from Spain, competing in the Moto2, Moto3 and MotoE World Championships. History The team was created by former world champion Jorge Martínez in 1992, when he was ...

. In the

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

season, Aspar team rider Nicolás Terol finished in second place in the 125cc class while his teammate Bradley Smith finished fourth, both riding Aprilia RSA 125 motorcycles.

Julián Simón Julián Simón Sesmero (born 3 April 1987) is a Spanish motorcycle racer. He is best known for winning the 2009 125cc World Championship. Career 125cc World Championship Born in Villacañas, Toledo, Spain, Simón began his racing career r ...

finished in second place in the inaugural

Moto2 Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

campaign, with teammate Mike Di Meglio finishing in twentieth place on Honda-powered Suter chassis. Aspar rider Héctor Barberá finished in twelfth place in the MotoGP division aboard a Ducati Desmosedici GP10. Martínez was inducted into the

MotoGP Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

Hall of Fame in 2019. Team owner of the 2024 Moto3 championship winner David "babyGOAT" Alonso, at The 2024 Japanese GP, with 4 races to go...

Complete Grand Prix motorcycle racing results

Points system from 1969 to 1987: Points system from 1988 to 1992: Points system from 1993 onwards: ( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

External links

Team Aspar web site

Mapfre Aspar Aprilia web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Jorge People from Ribera Alta (comarca) Motorcycle racers from the Province of Valencia Spanish motorcycle racers Motorcycle racing team owners 50cc World Championship riders 125cc World Championship riders 1962 births Living people 80cc World Championship riders 125cc World Riders' Champions