Raul Fernandez will leave France’s Tech3 motorcycle team after the season is over. He joins Aprilia in RNF and will drive alongside Miguel Oliveira. Finally, best wishes from the team.
Raul Fernandez made his mark in 2020 when he took six pole positions and won twice in the Moto3 class. KTM then decided to move the 20-year-old to the Moto2 class. Here he thrived on the Red Bull KTM-Ajo team. In a giant duel against his teammate Remy Gardner, he missed the world title by only four points at the first attempt. He had eight wins and seven poles.
The next logical step was to promote Gardner and Fernández to the Tech3-KTM team, as the Austrian manufacturer’s youth program often presents the best opportunities for the talent they have developed themselves.
But for Gardner and Fernández, the rookie season in the MotoGP class hasn’t been great at all. Both lead behind the field, placements in points are rare. After 13 of 20 races, Gardner is 23rd with nine points, while Fernandes is 24th with five points. But the 21-year-old Spaniard was injured in the spring.
Tech3 will race as a GASGAS team in 2022, with Pol Espargaró on one of the bikes. Farewell to Fernandez, Team Principal Herve Poncharal confirmed: “Tech3 KTM wishes Raul Fernandez the best of luck in the MotoGP for next season. Our tracks will be shared at the end of the season, but we are honored to have our Moto2 runner-up on his MotoGP debut this year.”
“Although the results in the first half of the season were not what either side expected, Raul remained very professional and it was great to work with him,” the Frenchman said. “He is an exceptional driver and I am sure he has a bright future ahead in this category.”
Poncharal added: “We have seven races left in 2022 so we will continue to work hard together to finish our adventure the right way. Now that his future is clear and there is less pressure on his shoulders, I hope he enjoys his final months with us. Hopefully that will bring us some good results.”
MotoGP 2023 Factory Teams
Red Bull KTM (Brad Bender, Jack Miller)
Ducati Lenovo (Pecco Bagnaia, Enea Bastianini)
Monster Yamaha (Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli)
Aprilia Racing (Alex Espargaro, Maverick Vinales)
Repsol Honda (Marc Marquez, Joan Mir)
Customer Teams 2023
Tech3-GASGAS (Pol Espargaró, Augusto Fernández)
Prima Pramac Ducati (Johann Zarco, Jorge Martin)
WithU-Aprilia (Miguel Oliveira, Raul Fernandez)
Moni VR46 Ducati (Luca Marini, Marco Pizzi)
Gresini Racing Ducati (Alex Marquez, Fabio Di Giannatonio)
LCR Honda (Alex Rins, Takaaki Nakagami)
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