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Ai Ogura's departure from Trackhouse Aprilia to join Yamaha is news that has left the Aprilia satellite team owner, Justin Marks, "super disappointed."
Marks, whose Trackhouse Entertainment Group owns both the Aprilia satellite MotoGP team and the Trackhouse Racing NASCAR Cup Series team, brought Ogura into his MotoGP squad for the 2025 season after the Japanese rider won the Moto2 title the previous year. At Trackhouse Aprilia, Ogura transformed from an inconsistent rider who showed flashes of brilliance but at other times suffered from a lack of confidence and heavy crashes, into one of the most consistent performers in MotoGP.
However, he will leave Trackhouse at the end of the season to join the factory Yamaha team, where he will partner with Jorge Martin. This is a blow for Marks, although he accepts the Japanese rider's decision.
"I don't want Ai [Ogura] to leave our team. I'm super disappointed about that," Marks stated during the British Grand Prix weekend. "I mean, I'm happy for him, right? These riders have to make the best decisions for their careers, and we're just really excited that he's at this stage of his career while riding our bikes. "He's a very level-headed guy and is one of those people who, when the pressure mounts, has a special place in his head where it's all about getting the job done. "The rest is just noise. I think that's an important and unique character trait, and he definitely has it," the American added.
The Silverstone race marked only Ogura's second non-finish of the season and his first race crash. The incident occurred after he fell behind at the start, as his launch device remained engaged heading into the first corner.
Before the British Grand Prix weekend, Ogura was second in the standings, but his retirement on Sunday saw him drop to third position.
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