As Jorge Martin stood in parc ferme at the Barcelona circuit wearing the Terminator overalls that commemorated his first MotoGP championship title, a figure watched him from afar, diluted in the people who crowded the pitlane, standing next to Jorge Lorenzo.
Xero Gasol is a psychologist who is used to working with sportsmen and women, especially in football, and whose contribution has been crucial to understanding the transformation Martin has undergone over the last year. He is passionate about hockey, to the extent that he has coached the Atletic Terrassa club in Spain.
Precisely this disconnection with MotoGP was one of the aspects that led Martin to work with someone who until last May, when he visited the Barcelona paddock for the first time during the Catalunya Grand Prix, had never been to a race.
Gasol has been one of Martin's most solid supporters throughout a season in which the Pramac rider has given a slightly different version of himself than usual. He has been more serene, both on and off the bike, a circumstance that allows us to understand the consistency reflected in his numbers: 16 podiums out of a possible 20, with three wins on Sunday, and seven in the sprints. A tremendous dynamic that has taken him to 508 points, the highest score in the history of the competition. An accumulated total even more powerful than Pecco Bagnaia's 11 victories.
"This year I have worked a lot with my psychologist, Xero, who has helped me to lose the fear of not winning, to race without fear of losing and to do it for the joy of winning," Martin acknowledged on Sunday, after bathing in champagne.
"This year, Jorge's change has been continuous. In this environment, when you need help, you ask for it," added Angel Martin, father of the newly crowned champion – the fifth Spaniard after Alex Criville, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez and Joan Mir. "Jorge has earned the title. He has achieved what he didn't achieve last year: consistency," added Pedro Acosta, another of Martin's regular friends, given that he shares the same agent with him.
It was Albert Valera who put Martin in contact with Gasol, who prefers to remain in the background, and that the spotlight is focused on the rider. Valera, who is also Aleix Espargaro's agent, suggested that the two meet at a meal to see how much they were on the same wavelength. From that moment on, communication between Martin and Gasol has been constant, face-to-face via video conferences and, above all, via WhatsApp.
The attention is immediate, especially in the most difficult moments, as for example in Sachsenring, where the then-contender crashed when he was leading the race. His first impulse, as soon as he returned to the pitbox and got into his team's truck, was to call Gasol and tell him what had happened.
"Jorge's change has been huge this year. Before he only had to look to tomorrow, with little or no focus on the present. Now he enjoys the here and now, and is aware of how privileged he is to be in the position he is in," one of Martin's closest friends told Motorsport.com,
"He had a very bad time, because he put a lot of pressure on himself and didn't enjoy the ride at all. This time he did," added this authoritative voice, who also prefers to remain anonymous so as not to take the limelight away from someone who deserves it all.
