After closing to within 16 points of Bagnaia with a double victory at Sachsenring, Martin remains in second but has now dropped ಞ62 points adrift of the reigning champion.

The Pramac Ducati rider returned to the top three for the first time since Germany on Saturday in Austria, but a long lap penalty for the main race dropped him back into the pack and he 💝could only salvage seve༒nth.

“I felt it was the best position I could achieve today starting from twelfth,” Martin said. “I did an amazing start and was with the podiu♒m group, but then went back to 14th. So I lost time overtaking a lot of riders a📖nd had to use too much rear tyre.

“It’s a pity because I h🌜ad the pace to fight for - not first position - but for sure second was a r🌳eal possibility. So now its three weekends where we lost our chance for the [GP] podium.”

While the MotoGP season is only at its midway stage, Martin🐈 believes another bad result next time in Barcelona will mean “we will have to fight for second”.

“I felt I was the only one who could put some pressure on [Bagnaia] todꩵay. Maybe not for the win, because he was really fast at the end, but I feel I was the only one who could be closer.

“I was losing a little bit [to Bagnaia] on corner 9 but the ♛rest I wꦍas really close or faster than him.

“So I hope we can put together a good qualifying in Montmelo because it will be key to battle for this c🎀🅰hampionship, if not then we will have to fight for second.”

Martin: Sprint pile-up ‘not my fault’

Martin said he still didn’t accept the long lap penalty decision👍 made by the FIM Stewards following the first turn pile-up in the Sprint race.

“No, no. I watched it a lot of times and I spoke with a lot of riders, like Randy Mamola, a lot of journalists… If you watch 🌳again and again you understand it was not my fault. It was just a combined s🗹ituation,” said Martin.

“We have something [on Sunday] that w🐲as🐲 an even more aggressive from another rider and nothing happened.

“I thin⭕k they had to take somebody [for] a penalty, to punish for the actওion and they chose the easy option maybe.”

The Spaniard also regretted that the penalty decision came after t🐲he Sprint race had finished and therefore compromised his chances in the full points Gran⛄d Prix.

“It’s a pity that if the S🍸tewards are unable to do a penalty during a Sprint race then you have to get it during the main race, which is more important and if you are fighting for a championship it destroys your possibilities.”

Martin remains just six points clear of VR46 Ducatꦚ🃏i rider Marco Bezzecchi, who was taken down in the Sprint pile-up, then finished third on Sunday.