Fernandez: "I hope this is the last race with the RS-GP. I've been waiting for the 24 since Jerez."

"I already tried the bike, and I it's going to make me progress, even if I shouldn't expect big changes. What will I keep from the current version? The electronics. The arrival of two Ducati riders? I'm only thinking about myself."

With his last appearance on the RS-GP23 coming up at the Sachsenring, before switching to the upgraded version he'll be using at Silverstone after the summer break, Raul Fernandez seems to know what he needs to work on between now and the end of the year. Twelfth in the overall riders standings and hounded by two two tikes like Morbidelli and Quartararo, the Trackhouse rider understands that, in order to achieve something more in the race, qualifying is the key.

"Compared to the beginning, we've made great strides in terms of grid position. Plus, now I can ride more according to my style. The electronics are definitely helping me in terms of the way I take the apex and come out of corners. Overall, there are many elements that make me say that we're going in the right direction but, most importantly, that no one has more merit than another. We're working well as a collective," he said, optimistically.

Looking ahead to 2025, the Spanish rider is equally confident about what he has to do. "My priority is to stay with the team. Does the contract have to have many zeros? Well, at least one or two. We hope to finalize the deal during the break," he said jokingly about his future.

For the very short term, the one leading up to August, his expectations are at least to get on the RS-GP24. "The plan at the beginning of the championship was to have the new bike in Jerez, but that didn't happen. But I already happened to try it and, all in all, it's similar. It's certainly not a second faster. Just changes the aerodynamics package and the manageability changed. The electronics? I'll keep the same ones I'm using," he explained.

If Aleix Espargaro announced his retirement, two former Ducati riders like Martin and Bezzecchi will arrive in Aprilia. "The Desmosedici is the reference bike today, so they'll bring a new mentality, and this could come in handy for development. Personally, I'm thinking about myself, to better understand the tires and the material available, rather than about who comes and goes on the team," the 23-year-old rider concluded.