The Leopard Racing team is currently cited by rumor as a possible replacement for the manufacturer Suzuki when it leaves MotoGP in 2023. A defection which surprised everyone and which will have to be held accountable, as the promoter clarified Dorna, who also said he was convinced of being able to fill the void left by another manufacturer or a private team. It is in this last scheme that the Leopard colors appear, knowing that their interest in reaching the premier category has never been feigned. The boss on the ground Miodrag Kotur responds to the rumors…
Until now seen as a curiosity with undisputed strength in Moto3, the team Leopard is today considered as a recourse to the withdrawal of Suzuki of MotoGP at the end of the season. A departure that the Hamamatsu manufacturer has still not yet made official, two days after this information of a Japanese board of directors euthanizing its structure, although showing great vigor in Grand Prix. Carmelo Ezpeleta, boss of Dorna, is waiting for the decision-makers at Hamamatsu firmly with his lease contract signed until 2026 in his pocket, to remind them that you do not enter or leave your MotoGP, like in a mill .
At the same time, it is necessary to think about what comes next, and the name of Leopard is advanced to consider it. An exhibition that the director of the team bearing the name of an energy drink to the confidential distribution Miodrag Kotur evaluated thus in the columns of Moto sprint : " this news from Suzuki is a surprise for us too, as for everyone. Also for Dorna, because they just signed a long-term contract and this announcement came less than a year after that deal ».
Leopard Racing will not enter the lion's den yet
And he adds: “ for our part, internally we have not talked about it. For the moment this is not on the agenda and I think that if a manufacturer leaves, Dorna will do everything to find another, it will not look for a satellite team ». Leopard will therefore not enter this lions' den that the question of the succession of Suzuki that holds the top spot. " We don't know what will happen in the world of MotoGP in five years » said the manager of Leopard.
« We will not wait for a team to leave to try to enter, especially since if someone wants to enter, they must notify in advance, in May or June, and we have not prepared anything on this plan for the following year. Now we do other things. We acquired the Viterbo circuit, in Italy, and we focus on other projects " finished Kotur which examines the situation from every angle.
Now, it remains to be seen whether another manufacturer will appear to launch into MotoGP. The story of Kawasaki in Grand Prix being at least as tumultuous as that of Suzuki et BMW being happy enough to see his coat of arms highlighted with the officials' cars, it's good for the group KTM that we should look at, with two other RC16s camouflaged by the coat of arms Gas Gas.
