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Aleix Espargarò was last year’s surprise, battling Aprilia for the title until a handful of races from the end. A result that was all the more surprising, because the Spanish rider is certainly not a kid, and he had his best season in the MotoGP after 30 years.
Now that the 2023 season is starting, Aleix needs to reconfirm himself and continue to improve. He’s the first to know this, as he told Manuel Pecino in an interview (read it HERE).
“The goal is the title, but I’m not under pressure, and I’m calm. I know I have the weapons and the experience that I didn’t have at the beginning of last year. I matured as a rider, so I feel relatively calm. In the last two years, I’m not the only one who’s learned a lot, but all of Aprilia has.”
Espargarò, like the rest of the team, will have to face the new Sprint Race.
“We’re trying to prepare as best as we can, but we’ll only know in Portimão what will happen,” he explained. “The positive thing is that nobody liked the FP3. You had to reach the time in the morning, when it was cold, and that will no longer exist. But now Saturday will be really stressful. When we riders said we weren’t convinced with the sprint race, it wasn’t because we didn’t like racing, but forty-two starts in the MotoGP are dangerous. It would’ve been better to try to do five sprint races, but I’m not the one organizing the championship, and we have to follow the rules.”
With this change in format, it’s even harder to make predictions about who the favorites are.
“There are a lot of fast Ducatis, and there are practically no rookies, so there are a dozen riders who can win the championship. Will regularity be rewarded because there are more races or can you risk more because there are more chances to recuperate points? It’s not an easy question,” Aleix wondered.
Then there’s Marquez, the unknown variable.
“I think Marc is the rider with the most talent I have ever raced with. Now, however, the bikes have leveled out, and the level of the riders is also very high. Before, there were four or five riders in front of everyone. Getting into the top ten has also become difficult and, if Honda doesn’t give him a good bike, it’ll be difficult for Marquez to fight. Aprilia and Ducati are doing an incredible job.”
