Japan's MotoGP podium drought is over: The history behind Ai Ogura's breakthrough

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Ai Ogura's third place at the French Grand Prix was the first MotoGP podium for a Japanese rider since 2012. The result finally ended the longest barren run for the country since Hideo Kanaya opened its rostrum account at the 1973 French GP.

It's worth taking a moment to put that into context because for Japan to endure 14 years without so much as a podium, particularly given the number of races in the modern schedule, was unthinkable at almost any point since that day at Paul Ricard.

Given the power of the country's manufacturers, which first came to the fore in the top class in the 1960s, even Kanaya's podium for Yamaha was perhaps overdue. But once that first top-three finish was in the books, they came steadily enough to be accepted as part of the premier class landscape. Until they ground to a halt with the tally on 93 after Katsuyuki Nakasuga's charge to second place at that wet 2012 finale, that is.

Admittedly, success was sporadic in the 1970s and '80s, with most podiums coming courtesy of Kanaya (five) and Takazumi Katayama (eight).

It was only in the 1990s that Japanese riders - almost invariably riding for one of their homeland's factories - began to register consistently strong results. The likes of Shinichi Itoh, Norick Abe, Tadayuki Okada and the Aoki brothers became top names in the 500cc category.

Another wave came along just after the turn of the century, led by Tohru Ukawa and the late Daijiro Katoh. Makoto Tamada also emerged as a frequent performer for Honda, and it was nothing out of the ordinary when he won his home grand prix in 2004. In fact, he wasn't even the only local on the Motegi podium that day, with Shinya Nakano completing it for Kawakasi.

Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing Team, Marco Bezzecchi, Aprilia Racing, Ai Ogura, Trackhouse Racing