They welcomed an old acquaintance, but the red carpet was rolled out like saddles, that will be seen more frequently from next March 26 in Portugal. The Algarve circuit will hold the first race of the MotoGP season and GasGas has unveiled in its factory in Barcelona their weapons for a course in which two world champions will meet in their garage. Pol Espargaro (Moto2 champion in 2013) and Augusto Fernandez (current champion of the intermediate category), will get on the handlebars of the RC16 under the umbrella of the Spanish firm, which joins the premier class with a long history in the world of competition.
You only need to look at the Moto3 category to see the success of a firm like GasGas, which boasts current champion with the title of Izan Guevara. But beyond the World Championship, the Spanish firm has shone in other disciplines such as Trial, AMA Supercross, MXGP, Enduro and Dakar, before making the leap to MotoGP. And as novel as his entry, will be the presence of an Augusto Fernández who will have no one to fight for the title of rookies of the year. The Mallorcan will be the only freshman in the class but after what he demonstrated in the Sepang tests, perhaps the objectives are somewhat more ambitious than those expected from a period of adaptation. Because although Ducati’s dominance is unquestionable, the RC16 (inherited from KTM) which is based on the Spanish team, achieved two victories in the last season. Although Spanish calls for prudence.
“I don’t know what to expect in terms of positions”, admits Augusto, despite the fact that his goal is “to be competitive soon”. For the Mallorcan this is “the most important year” of his career, but he will need patience to understand his arrival in a category with which he fulfills a dream. He did it exactly 10 years ago and also under the umbrella of Tech 3 a Pol Espargaró who returns to his “roots”. In his new challenge with GasGas, the rider from Granollers hopes to return to the top and trusts in the potential of a motorcycle that he must continue to develop due to the level of progression that the category has experienced: “I felt the DNA of the motorcycle and working we can reach high. The bike is almost ready to fight for something big this year.” The trust in the team is total and, in turn, reciprocal towards the pilots as demonstrated by Poncharal, team manager: “We have always believed that experience and youth is a good mix. Pol is happy to be back and having Augusto is exciting because we welcome him as Moto2 champion. I am very happy and very proud.”