Raul Fernandez was a point of tension between KTM and Yamaha at a time in the 2021 season when the 21-year-old Spaniard wanted to take advantage of a dynamic so good that nothing seemed to resist him in Moto2. An acceleration in his career which forced the Austrian brand to review its plans by making room for him in MotoGP. But the person concerned was rather eyeing a Yamaha, thinking of an escape from the Austrian family à la Jorge Martin towards Ducati. Aki Ajo, who was in the front row to observe these events, looks back on this tense period which Lin Jarvis for Yamaha confirms in passing…
Raul fernandez is certainly a talent whose development we will have to follow in MotoGP from 2022, but it is also a character. When the season ended, he made no secret of his frustration to have missed the world title in Moto2 against his teammate Remy gardner who will also be his box companion at Tech3 with an RC16. In the process, he scratched the Ajo team to whom he owes a lot. Because in the days of Moto3, it was not so obvious that hope Raul Fernandez is the highest representative of his generation.
More Aki Ajo don't blame him. And for good reason: the results silence these comments. We will therefore recall that the Red Bull KTM Ajo team won two world titles and 20 Grands Prix in 2021. In this table, Raul fernandez, 21, won eight Grands Prix in 2021 and missed out on the world title by just four points against Remy gardner, when he was just a rookie. “ We knew Raúl had huge potential “, says Aki Ajo, looking back. “ But no one expected such a season. It took Raúl some time at the start of the 2020 season to get used to our Moto3 team and show some solid racing. He did a great job at the end of the season. And then he continued at this level in the Moto2 World Championship this year ».
« Raúl is undoubtedly an immense talent. He worked very professionally on the track and with the team "Adds Garlic before his memory of the stormy episode of the transfer market with the contacts made by his pilot on the side of Yamaha : “ it is difficult for each driver to decide after the first third of the season whether he wants to move up to a higher category. Rául took a giant step from 2019 to 2020 when he joined us in Moto3 last year », analyzes the Finn on speedweek.
« He took a similar step in Moto2 in 2021. So it was difficult for all of us to assess what would be the best solution for 2022. This is a normal situation for everyone involved. In our profession, this decision becomes more and more complicated because each driver is younger and younger. ». Aki Ajo points out this parameter which is causing more and more debate in the paddock: “ the transfer market starts moving earlier in the season every year. But it's difficult for the driver if he has to decide his future after 5 races out of 18. I don't want to reveal any details about our discussions. But Rául then decided to go to MotoGP, so the matter was clear ».
Raul Fernandez already needs to watch out for Pedro Acosta
For details, please refer to the version of the facts given by Lynn Jarvis, the Yamaha man: “ Raúl came to us because he wanted to ride a Yamaha, and when someone with such talent comes to you, you listen to him. We said, of course we were very interested. But we also specified that the pilot must be free, we didn't want to get into a legal battle with another company in the same industry ". The Englishman adds: “ This is not the way we work. So we were very, very clear. I think he tried to find a way to break his contract, but in the end he couldn't. Now he's moved to MotoGP with KTM, which isn't too bad for him I think ».
It remains that at KTM, it continues to grow behind and Raul fernandez will have to look in his mirrors as much as ahead for the rest of his career. Because Aki Ajo is especially thinking of another young driver… “ Acosta showed something very special. I might even spot more similarities between Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta. He has a certain “old school” mindset and seems very mature at a young age. Perhaps more mature than Marc at the same age. Raúl is a little different because his path to the top of the world has been bumpier in the past than with Marc and Pedro ».
Acosta will be a Moto2 rookie in 2022 and he arrives in the category, crowned with a Moto3 title acquired at just over 16 years old. In MotoGP, nothing is definitely ever acquired.
