I'm a real title contender now, declares Ai Ogura

Ai Ogura has declared himself a genuine MotoGP championship contender after moving into second place in the points table with the runner-up spot at the German Grand Prix.

The Japanese has truly come of age in his second year as a MotoGP rider, with the Sachsenring result his fifth successive top-four finish. The highlight of that streak, which stretches back to the Italian Grand Prix in May, was his breakthrough win at Assen last time out.

The runner-up spot in Saxony helped the Trackhouse Aprilia rider move from fourth in the standings to second, 14 points behind factory rider Jorge Aprilia. Encouragingly for the 2024 Moto2 world champion, Martin's performance level is currently lower than Ogura's.

Asked after the race if he was a real championship contender, the ever-frank Ogura replied: "I mean, yeah, for sure. We're in a good position in the championship and in the last three races we were able to be really strong. So, yeah, our target is going to be to keep working like this."

Ai Ogura, Trackhouse Racing (Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / Getty Images)

Far chattier than he had been in his monosyllabic press conference on Thursday, Ogura also offered a confident assessment of his personal performance over the first half of 2026: "I can rate my first half of the season really high. I mean, 10 out of 10. I didn't expect to be this strong this year."

Ogura remains wary of the opposition going into the second half of the season, however.

"You know, the conditions change and the guys who are going fast on [a given] circuit change and it's really tough to manage all this situation, I think," he said. "So, yeah, our job is going to be to do the same every time and see where we can finish."

The 25-year-old expects to spend his summer break in a far more peaceful environment than a MotoGP paddock– which should help him reset for the battle ahead.

"I don't know, riding and fishing probably," he replied when asked about his plans for the interlude. "The target is going to be to try to come back as neutral as possible."