Jorge Martin’s return to racing ended in an unexpected way. Martin, the reigning champion, was finally back on the track at the Qatar Grand Prix, which was his first race of the 2025 season. Sadly, during the Sunday's race, things took a sharp turn for the worse.

Having his first race with Aprilia, Martin was just outside the points when he crashed on lap 14 at Turn 12. And as he fell, he was hit by another rider, specifically by Fabio Di Giannantonio. The crash was serious enough that Martin needed help at the track and was quickly taken to the medical center. From there, he was moved to Hamad General Hospital in Doha for further tests.

At first, doctors found that Martin had a rib injury and a collapsed lung (in medical terms, called pneumothorax). The CT scan later showed the lung problem had gotten worse, so the doctor had to insert a tube to help him breathe and to reduce the pressure in the chest. He was admitted for observation.

And the final diagnosis: multiple broken ribs (11 in total). In an update shared by Aprilia: Eight ribs in the back, from the first to the eighth rib, and three more broken ribs on the side. He has a bit of swelling in his lung area, but thankfully, he had not suffered any damage to his head, spine or other organs.

Unfortunately, his anticipated return ended in hospital, and not at the finish line. Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola said, “Performance isn’t important right now—our thoughts are with Jorge during this tough time. We’re fully behind him.”

Martin later posted on Instagram: “Thank God, this could have been much worse. I’ll try to keep you updated.”