MotoGP | Aleix: “New Captain? He must be hungry, like Bezzecchi”

Just a week ago, Aleix Espargaro announced his retirement at the end of the season on his home track, where it all began. Seven days later, the market is already on fire to find out who will take his place in Aprilia in 2025. The Granollers rider had made no secret of wanting to see his friend Jorge Martin astride the RS-GP.

But everything is still to be decided and Aleix aims to get the most out of this last season as a starting driver, carrying with him the enthusiasm of Barcelona: “I’m happy, it was a fantastic weekend in Barcelona and I’m bringing the good mood here to Mugello too . It will be an important weekend for us and for the team, we hope to replicate the results of Barcelona in Italy. In the past we haven’t done too badly, we will make some changes with the team to improve a little because the 2024 RS-GP is more effective in braking, but in the fast corners we are still missing something that we had last year.”

On a very hot Thursday from a market perspective due to the Ducati indiscretions on the second official saddle, an opinion from Aleix Espargaro, who would like Martin on the Aprilia, cannot be missed. However, he thinks this is unlikely to happen: “The more you win, the more you want to win. Imagine winning a title with one brand and going on to put the number 1 on the bike of another brand as big as Aprilia. It’s a dream and the team would be very motivated. I would love to, but 99% of the time it won’t happen.”

If Martin doesn’t go, who can replace Aleix? Espargaro believes that to get on that saddle you only need one requirement: being hungry. This is why he is aiming for an Italian driver: “If you want to be the new one Captain you must be hungry for Aprilia. You can have the best team in the world, but it’s not an easy task to be number one of a factory team like Aprilia. So you have to really want it. Bastianini? I also really like Marco Bezzecchi, I think he is strong and hungry. He hasn’t won much in MotoGP yet because he is young. Both options would be very interesting. Furthermore, for Aprilia to have an Italian rider would be very nice.”

However, before hanging up his helmet, Aleix Espargaro remains focused on 2024 and does not want to say too much about future plans: “I don’t want to talk about my future yet, I want to enjoy the present a little longer. It won’t even be that interesting, I’ll be a pilot and that’s it. But sometimes, even if you are in the best place in the world, in this case Aprilia, you need new challenges and new motivations.”

Watch: MotoGP Video | The iconic moments of Mugello! – 2024 #ItalianGP

Bezzecchi proud but cautious and focused

On Thursday at Mugello, what Aleix Espargaro said was reported to Bezzecchi. The VR46 rider appreciates the Catalan’s compliments, but he believes he does not yet feel ready to think about the future, being focused on trying to improve this year: “I’m happy that Aleix mentioned my name. Undoubtedly it would be a nice destination, it is an official team and a bike that is growing a lot. They have produced beautiful results and are doing a great job. My ambition, like that of every rider, is to race in an official team. But at the moment I’m not thinking about it much because I’m having a bit of difficulty and I’m more focused on trying to do better. But obviously I’m looking around and trying to keep all the possibilities open.”