Post by truenorth on Jun 10, 2022 5:34:52 GMT -8
Exclusive: Pol Espargaró returns to KTM
Pol Espargaró returns to KTM after two years
The Red Bull KTM factory team will compete with Binder and Miller for the next two years. Pol Espargaró has now been chosen for the Tech3 team. Favorite for second place is Remy Gardner.
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As expected, Jack Miller was confirmed yesterday as the second rider in the Red Bull-KTM Factory Team for the next two years alongside Brad Binder, who is currently sixth in the World Championship . And of the candidates for the KTM Tech3 Factory Team, Miguel Oliveira has since disappeared. Because the four-time MotoGP winner did not want to be pushed into the customer team by KTM and has reached an agreement with Gresini Racing; he will take over from Enea Bastianini in the Ducati customer team, who is moving to the Lenovo Ducati factory team instead of Miller.
Oliveira made it clear to KTM before the Mugello GP that he did not accept the return to Tech3 (he won there on the KTM RC16 in the 2020 season in Spielberg and Portimão). "I have informed the KTM management that I will definitely not accept the Tech3 seat and that I will claim my place in the Factory Team," said the Portuguese. «But this one was no longer available… So I considered other options. And apart from KTM, there were still a few seats left."
Meanwhile, KTM has confirmed the two-year contract with Miller. And it's no secret since the Mugello GP that Pol Espargaró (31) will return to KTM after two years at Repsol Honda. Unlike Oliveira, has accepted the offer for the Tech3 team.
“Pol had a very strong influence on the MotoGP project from 2017 to 2020. With his help we got to where we are. Pol still has a score to settle at KTM. Because when the motorcycle became capable of winning, he left us for another manufacturer, where he pursued his childhood dream. In the meantime, it has been noticed that not everything is easier there than with us. Like Jack Miller, Pol has extraordinary abilities."
Pol Espargaró has endured many disappointments and heavy falls at HRC. He is only 13th in the World Championship standings and has only had two podiums in 27 races: 2nd place at Misnao-2 last year and 3rd place at Doha 2022. He complains that the Honda engineers will be there in two years failed to generate more grip and traction on the rear wheel.
This means that three of the four riders for the KTM 2023 MotoGP squad have been confirmed.
It is not yet clear who will be Pol Espargaró's team-mate. Remy Gardner has the best prospects provided the disagreements between his manager Paco Sanchez and KTM can be resolved. The Spaniard had described the driver's fee offered for Gardner for 2023 as too low and also questioned the quality of the Tech3 technical crew and the skills of crew chief Alex Merhand.
Tech3 team owner Hervé Poncharal said that the driver question at KTM was decided jointly by company boss Stefan Pierer, board member Hubert Trunkenpolz and motorsport director Pit Beirer.
Poncharal was delighted at the Catalunya GP with a clear improvement from Moto2 World Champion Remy Gardner. "In eleventh place, he lost only 5.6 seconds to Miguel Oliveira, who won there in 2021," said the Frenchman in an interview with SPEEDWEEK.com. “That was an important step towards the top ten. Also in the Monday test, Remy did well compared to Brad and Miguel. So it's a clear improvement over Mugello, where Remy struggled a lot. We've seen a clear improvement over the eight days, although nothing has changed on the bike. In the end, it's always the same: we'd rather see the glass half full than half empty. Remy's performance has been good lately. You can build on that."
Poncharal mentioned that Raúl Fernández is still in discussion at Tech3 for 2023. But the Moto2 vice world champion was already said to have a lack of understanding of technology in Moto2, and he is also visibly having a harder time than Gardner in MotoGP, his performances are currently characterized by helplessness and hopelessness.
The assumptions of individual media that KTM will bring Darryn Binder from WithU-RNF-Yamaha to Tech3-KTM are unfounded. This could make older brother Brad Binder happy, but KTM would like to support at least one hopeful self-made rider from the in-house MotoGP Academy in the Tech3 team. Hervé Poncharal emphasizes that there were never any negotiations with Darryn Binder, although he has the same manager as Brad in Bob Moore.
And Pedro Acosta will certainly not be promoted to MotoGP as early as 2023 after the first Moto2 year after the recent experiences and disappointments with Raúl Fernández from KTM.
Pol Espargaró returns to KTM after two years
The Red Bull KTM factory team will compete with Binder and Miller for the next two years. Pol Espargaró has now been chosen for the Tech3 team. Favorite for second place is Remy Gardner.
Motorsport highlights twice a week straight to your inbox.
As expected, Jack Miller was confirmed yesterday as the second rider in the Red Bull-KTM Factory Team for the next two years alongside Brad Binder, who is currently sixth in the World Championship . And of the candidates for the KTM Tech3 Factory Team, Miguel Oliveira has since disappeared. Because the four-time MotoGP winner did not want to be pushed into the customer team by KTM and has reached an agreement with Gresini Racing; he will take over from Enea Bastianini in the Ducati customer team, who is moving to the Lenovo Ducati factory team instead of Miller.
Oliveira made it clear to KTM before the Mugello GP that he did not accept the return to Tech3 (he won there on the KTM RC16 in the 2020 season in Spielberg and Portimão). "I have informed the KTM management that I will definitely not accept the Tech3 seat and that I will claim my place in the Factory Team," said the Portuguese. «But this one was no longer available… So I considered other options. And apart from KTM, there were still a few seats left."
Meanwhile, KTM has confirmed the two-year contract with Miller. And it's no secret since the Mugello GP that Pol Espargaró (31) will return to KTM after two years at Repsol Honda. Unlike Oliveira, has accepted the offer for the Tech3 team.
“Pol had a very strong influence on the MotoGP project from 2017 to 2020. With his help we got to where we are. Pol still has a score to settle at KTM. Because when the motorcycle became capable of winning, he left us for another manufacturer, where he pursued his childhood dream. In the meantime, it has been noticed that not everything is easier there than with us. Like Jack Miller, Pol has extraordinary abilities."
Pol Espargaró has endured many disappointments and heavy falls at HRC. He is only 13th in the World Championship standings and has only had two podiums in 27 races: 2nd place at Misnao-2 last year and 3rd place at Doha 2022. He complains that the Honda engineers will be there in two years failed to generate more grip and traction on the rear wheel.
This means that three of the four riders for the KTM 2023 MotoGP squad have been confirmed.
It is not yet clear who will be Pol Espargaró's team-mate. Remy Gardner has the best prospects provided the disagreements between his manager Paco Sanchez and KTM can be resolved. The Spaniard had described the driver's fee offered for Gardner for 2023 as too low and also questioned the quality of the Tech3 technical crew and the skills of crew chief Alex Merhand.
Tech3 team owner Hervé Poncharal said that the driver question at KTM was decided jointly by company boss Stefan Pierer, board member Hubert Trunkenpolz and motorsport director Pit Beirer.
Poncharal was delighted at the Catalunya GP with a clear improvement from Moto2 World Champion Remy Gardner. "In eleventh place, he lost only 5.6 seconds to Miguel Oliveira, who won there in 2021," said the Frenchman in an interview with SPEEDWEEK.com. “That was an important step towards the top ten. Also in the Monday test, Remy did well compared to Brad and Miguel. So it's a clear improvement over Mugello, where Remy struggled a lot. We've seen a clear improvement over the eight days, although nothing has changed on the bike. In the end, it's always the same: we'd rather see the glass half full than half empty. Remy's performance has been good lately. You can build on that."
Poncharal mentioned that Raúl Fernández is still in discussion at Tech3 for 2023. But the Moto2 vice world champion was already said to have a lack of understanding of technology in Moto2, and he is also visibly having a harder time than Gardner in MotoGP, his performances are currently characterized by helplessness and hopelessness.
The assumptions of individual media that KTM will bring Darryn Binder from WithU-RNF-Yamaha to Tech3-KTM are unfounded. This could make older brother Brad Binder happy, but KTM would like to support at least one hopeful self-made rider from the in-house MotoGP Academy in the Tech3 team. Hervé Poncharal emphasizes that there were never any negotiations with Darryn Binder, although he has the same manager as Brad in Bob Moore.
And Pedro Acosta will certainly not be promoted to MotoGP as early as 2023 after the first Moto2 year after the recent experiences and disappointments with Raúl Fernández from KTM.