During the long break in June it was the riders market that animated MotoGP. The entry of Marc Marquez into the Ducati factory team triggered a domino effect among the other riders of the Italian brand: while Ktm welcomed Enea Bastianini, Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi moved to Aprilia. Furthermore, the Pramac team will leave Ducati to join the Yamaha project. According to Aleix Espargaro, it is an earthquake that risks soon taking its toll on the Borgo Panigale team. In fact, the Spanish driver explained to the newspaper ‘AS’ that, in his eyes, the choice made by the Italian team is a real gamble.
I gamble ducats
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Espargaro began by recognizing the value of Marquez, eight-time world champion in the MotoGP, six of which in MotoGP: “There is no doubt, Ducati has signed one of the best riders in history. Marc has an incredible talent, but above all a crazy hunger.” Yet, according to Aleix, this is still insufficient to compensate for the losses: “They shot themselves in the foot, because they certainly lost two bikes in Pramac and three riders with enormous talent who will not go to another championship, like F1. Instead, they will end up reinforcing the two strongest rival brands, such as Ktm, which has formed a great team, and Aprilia.” In short, Marquez-Ducati knows a lot about gambling: “We’ll see if the all-in bet works well. Only time will tell.”
growth
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Espargaro has announced that he will conclude his adventure in MotoGP at the end of 2024, thus leaving the free seat in Aprilia to his friend Martin. A good choice from his point of view: “I think Aprilia made a good choice. The same goes for Bezzecchi, who is a young rider, just like Jorge. He is hungry and talented. Surely both of them are not very happy with Ducati, they will want to take revenge.” Aleix only has one regret: “I’m very sorry that Vinales didn’t stay in Aprilia, preferring Ktm. After Jorge’s announcement, I spoke to him, I called him and told him that it was the best team and that we could fight for the World Championship, but Maverick made a different decision. I hope he can also win with a fourth brand.”
