MotoGP p💮oints leader Jorge Martin believes he is “the best rider there is” right now, though concedes he has to “polish things”.

Martin finished runner-up in the championship last season to Francesco Bag🐓naia and has led the 2024 points for m🐷ost of the campaign.

After a disastrous San Marino Grand Prix, however, he saw his lead cut from 26 𝕴points to seven after a strategy gamble in iffy conditions dropped him a lap down the order to 15th.

In an interview with DAZN prior to last weekend’s Misano round, Martin was asked who he felt was t🏅he best rider on the grid currently.

“It's very difficult,” Martin began.

“What does being t🐎he best rider mean? It's very ambiguous, it﷽'s very difficult.

“There's a high level, the four of us who are there in the fight, the four with Duca🐓ti, Pecco [Bagnaia], Marc [Marquez], ﷽Enea [Bastianini] and I are one step ahead - that's clear.

“At the moment, it may seem arrogant, but I think I'm the be♏st rider there is.

“I have to polish things, work and im𝔍prove, that's something I can't stop doing, because if not, ♛in the end, in half a year you go from first to eighth.

“But I think I'm the fastest there is, and the numbers show it, it's n♋ot just me saying it.”

Martin has scored the most poles of any rider this season, with five to his credit versus two for Bagnaia, one for Bastianini, one for Maverick Vinales, two for Aleix Esౠpargaro and two for Marc Marquez.

He also has the most sprint wins than 🌞anyone with four, though that is 🌌only one more than chief title rival Bagnaia after 13 rounds of the 2024 season.

And in grand prix victories, Marꦦtin has only managed two against Bagnaia’s seven, while Marc Marquez has now matched the Pramac✃ rider’s tally following his San Marino GP triumph.

Martin’s championship lead has largely been kept intact through the Spaniard’s consistency, having failed to score points🔴 on just three occasions in 2024.

In the same DAZN interview, Martin admits he ‘felt like a fool’ after Ducati elected to go back on its decision to⛎ promote him to its factory team in favour of Marquez.

Martin will join the factory Aprilia squad inste💯ad in 2025 alongside Marco Bezzecchi, while Pramac Racing will ditch Ducati machinery to partner up 🐈with Yamaha.