Takaaki Nakagami “super happy” for his “very intelligent” compatriot Ai Ogura after winning the Moto2 title

Ai Ogura’s victory in the 2024 Moto2 World Championship marked the first world title for Japan since Hiroshi Aoyama won the last 250cc World Cup in 2009.

Only four Japanese riders have won races in Moto2 since it was introduced in 2010: Shoya Tomizawa, Takaaki Nakagami and Tetsuta Nagashima won GPs in the intermediate class before Ogura moved up to Moto2 in 2021.

For Takaaki Nakagami, Ogura’s championship success was deserved.

“Of course, I feel very happy for him,” Nakagami said after the MotoGP race in Thailand, “because I think he deserved to win the championship.

“He was just super consistent throughout the season; Also today, at the beginning of the race, he was losing positions a little bit, but he was very smart and gained positions at the end of the race to P2.

“I was very happy, I congratulate him a lot and it is nice that before the MotoGP race I saw him win the championship.

“I think he’s super happy, but all the Japanese fans and I are also happy for him.”

Ogura’s 2025 teammate Raúl Fernández echoed Nakagami’s sentiments, as the Spanish driver spent much of his time in pre-Grand Prix classes racing alongside Ogura.