Jorge Martín is the new MotoGP world champion and, unsurprisingly, has been in high demand by the media. However, after his title win, he was unintentionally caught up in a controversy involving two Spanish television networks.
According to El País, Martín was invited to appear on the program La Revuelta on TVE last Thursday and was on his way to the public broadcaster’s studios, as documented on his social media. However, the interview could not take place, as the rider himself announced while already in the dressing rooms.
Martín later apologized on social media: ‘Thank you to the entire La Revuelta team and the audience! It was a great evening. I will be back soon with everyone’.
The host, David Broncano, claimed that the team from El Hormiguero, a program on Antena 3, pressured Martín to cancel his appearance after learning he was heading to TVE’s studios. The team from that show reportedly contacted one of Dorna’s top staff.
According to El País, host Pablo Motos was upset about not having priority for Martín’s first post-title interview. The championship’s promoter, Dorna, then allegedly asked the #89 to prioritize El Hormiguero and Antena 3, given their strong relationship with MotoGP. This relationship includes an agreement allowing Atresmedia TV to broadcast the Spanish, Catalan, and Valencia GPs on free-to-air television until 2025 through a deal with DAZN and MotoGP.
Martín’s team denies any exclusivity agreement with El Hormiguero, stating there is no clause for such in Dorna’s contract. However, Antena 3 claims an exclusivity deal was made with Martín ‘two weeks before the end of the championship’, attributing the situation to ‘a mistake’ by one of the rider’s representatives, which led to Dorna’s involvement.
Ha sido un malentendido sin mayor importancia. Dos semanas antes de la final, habíamos acordado contar en exclusiva con Jorge Martín en nuestro programa. Hoy uno de sus representantes ha cometido un error al cambiar la visita que tenían programada con otro piloto. Tras lo…
— El Hormiguero (@El_Hormiguero) November 21, 2024
Meanwhile, the team from La Revuelta praised Martín and his team on the show’s official social media accounts: ‘In case there was any doubt, yesterday Jorge Martín and his team did everything possible to ensure the interview could take place. Their behavior was impeccable, and we hope to invite him again in the future to celebrate his world championship with him’.
¡Gracias a todo el equipo de @LaRevuelta_TVE y al público! Fue una gran noche! Pronto volveré y lo compartiremos con toda la audiencia ❤️ https://t.co/2BNrIWTRlE
— Jorge Martín Almoguera (@88jorgemartin) November 22, 2024
The interview with El Hormiguero and Pablo Motos has not yet aired but was recorded to be broadcast on November 27. Martín’s communications agency has since apologized for not first informing Antena 3 about his intent to appear on TVE’s La Revuelta.