The wheel is turning in MotoGP, including for test riders, however posh they may be, and the message coming from KTM shows it. The Mattighofen firm has raised the average age of its starting drivers by integrating Jack Miller and Pol Espargaró into its ranks for 2023. Augusto Fernandez, the lone rookie, avoids too much inflation from this point of view while on the test team side, we are calling for deflation in civil status. And as Hubert Trunkenpolz, Managing Director of Pierer Mobility AG, says, this is a directive with immediate application.
Dani Pedrosa et Mika Kallio will they finally have a peaceful winter? For the first mentioned, undoubtedly. For the second, perhaps a little less, even if he knows that from now on 40 years old, you have to start considering the rest of your professional life with a suit rather than leather. That being said, the aforementioned Spaniard is only three years younger than the Finn.
SO ? SO, Hubert Trunkenpolz, Managing Director of Pierer Mobility AG, looked into the matter. Because he would like to have a pilot in Mattighofen who is familiar with aerodynamic devices and other functions of the attitude correction. And this is not the case Dani Pedrosa, present on the RC16 since 2019, nor Rock, in contention since the start of the KTM adventure in MotoGP. However, if we must make a useful contribution to official drivers on these new themes, we must also be able to claim a certain caliber in terms of performance. So not easy…
KTM: “German-speaking pilots are always welcome here"
The T of KTM readily recognizes this: “ it is not easy to find good test pilots » who are at the same time former competitors in the premier category and also not too advanced in age… But this objective must nevertheless be achieved: “ we need to make sure we find a younger test pilot instead of Kallio. We have excellent test pilots in Pedrosa and Kallio, but they have been there for years Admitted Trunkenpolz à Speedweek. com.
For this reason, during the last private test in Jerez he invited Jonas Folger, 29 years old, to test the RC16 so that a possible collaboration with the German pilot can be evaluated. His compatriot Stefan bradl is also in the crosshairs. It is at the service of Honda for six years, and it will be difficult to convince him to change manufacturers. His contract expires at the end of 2023 and KTM will try to do everything to bring him back to his side.
Stefan pierer, general manager of the Austrian company, emphasizes that he “ knows Stefan's contractual situation well " and " German-speaking pilots are always welcome here ". Speaking the same language is certainly a positive note, which becomes a plus for signing an Austrian contract.
