What's driving Jorge Martin's Aprilia escape plot?

Richard Asher is a freelance sports journalist with ancient links to Autosport. He regularly helps out on the news desk, covers races, and sub-edits for the magazine.

The South African journalism graduate first came to the attention of the editorial team via a young journalist competition in 2002 - when the 22-year-old was working as a hotel night manager in Surrey! The following June he helped cover Bentley's Le Mans win, and by autumn he was on the staff. Over the next four years, his main focus was covering the British Formula 3 Championship - though A1GP, sportscars and editing National pages also kept him busy. Most weekends off were spent showing his ineptitude at the wheel of Formula Vee or Stock Hatch machinery in UK club events.

Having vowed not to get 'stuck in motorsport' for life, he returned to South Africa in 2008 to edit Golf Punk magazine. The sports junkie's freelance career since then has seen him cover golf, cricket, rugby and (obviously) motorsport. He commentates on Guerilla Cricket, writes the Posh Sports Precinct on Substack and has also published several travel books.

After further globetrotting including a stint as a truck driver in the Australian Outback, he now resides on the mighty plains of far eastern Austria.