Before the Catalan Grand Prix, Espargaro, who has won three MotoGP races, said he’ll stop racing after this season. This leaves a top spot open for 2025, and some big names are being talked about.
Enea Bastianini’s manager mentioned talking to Aprilia about signing Bastianini, who has won five MotoGP races but might lose his seat with Ducati.
Ducati will decide next week at the Italian GP who gets their second factory team spot for 2025, possibly Jorge Martin or Marc Marquez.
Aprilia’s CEO, Massimo Rivola, hinted they have a preference for the next rider. He said they’re focused on Espargaro until the season ends but sees good opportunities in the rider market. He mentioned the possibility of an Italian rider on an Italian bike but said it won’t be easy to replace Aleix Espargaro.
Aprilia has had Italian riders before, like Marco Melandri in 2015 and Andrea Iannone in 2019.
As for Espargaro, he might become a test rider in 2025, but he’s unlikely to stay with Aprilia. His manager mentioned he wants new challenges and enjoys working with different manufacturers. They’re still figuring out where he’ll go, but they think it’s a great chance for a manufacturer to have Espargaro as a test rider.
