It is a Pol Espargaró of total transparency and touching sincerity who confided in his journey, his present, and his fear of the future. The Spaniard, with his brother Aleix, made it on his own, started from nothing to build this career which ultimately hangs by a thread and which demanded so much that it offers no other alternative. So what if everything stops? The fear of emptiness is all the stronger as the end can also arrive without having been decided, and therefore prepared at all. A delicate moment, a gray zone in which the Spaniard is today, returning from serious injuries within a KTM team where there are more riders under contract than motorcycles...
Given the situation at KTM, it's time to show yourself in your best light, but Pol Espargaro can't do it yet. At least against the clock, because in terms of self-sacrifice, resilience, courage and sacrifice, he is the World Champion of the moment. What he accomplishes today aboard his GASGAS Tech3 is heroic if we remember where he came from. An inner strength that has been forged over the course of a career that has been a constant challenge from the start. He thus recalls Moto sprint : " my father was a very simple car mechanic ».
« He earned just enough to feed a humble, normal family.. My and Aleix's luck was this: dad was good at repairing motorcycles, so from a money point of view, at least the assistance was free... My grandfather helped me a lot, some small sponsors . It was complicated, in fact, I remember that my brother Aleix had to stop. Then he started again, and there we were both. The hunger to arrive made us move forward » he describes.
A hunger and thirst that are not the rule for everyone… “ There are many drivers with a full suitcase, but little appetite for victory » mentions the Spaniard. “ You have to have the need to succeed, I knew that when I was a child. I was like, “Pol, you’re either going to the top or you’re going to do something else.” We'll stop here soon. The money is gone. » ". As far as he is concerned, providence has rewarded his sacrifice: “ fortunately, and at the decisive moment, a Catalan sponsor came to support us, able to help me during my childhood. By going through a few stages of growth, I was able to build a solid career path and a real professional career, then consolidated over the years ».
Pol Espargaro: “ which of us has regularly attended school, can pursue a job other than motorcycling? You can find yourself unemployed, which is best avoided »
And otherwise ? This other alternative, less pleasant, leads him to question the precariousness of a career, from start to finish. He thinks of the young hopefuls who, getting involved in this sport very early, already determine the rest of their lives: “ children spend time and money on their careers: it is impossible to attend and complete studies. If the results do not come, they will find themselves unemployed ". He mentioned : " They say that motorcycle sport is a business for the rich? It's not always true ". And he is a living example.
« Motorcycling, over time, grows in terms of professionalism » notes Pol Espargaro. " This means that, even when they are children or adolescents, pilots are forced to think exclusively about building a professional career : riding a motorbike, following physiotherapy sessions, consulting a psychologist, going out by bike, eating a certain way... These are activities that take time and, obviously, there is no more time to devote to anything else, not even to work in an alternative sector. At 15 or 16 years old, we are already left and right with suitcases, how can we undertake and complete a serious study program?! Impossible ».
And part B, which is not elaborated at the beginning, is obviously not found at the end… Which leads him to talk about his current affairs: “ this world goes away when the inner flame goes out, otherwise there are troubles, more than injuries. If it's the injury that determines the end of your career, you suffer the blow. When a driver cannot decide on the epilogue of his career, he suffers the worst thing. He falls into “misfortune”. Who among us regularly attended school? Who studied? Not to mention the money earned, who among us can have a job other than motorcycling?! ».
As far as he is concerned, this is his feeling: “ maybe I'll take care of something else. I'll have to find something I like, but it will be difficult to accept. You can stay in the industry in a variety of guises: mechanic, team leader, public relations. This is good, because these are proposals coming from an already known environment. Or maybe it's difficult. We find ourselves unemployed, which is best avoided ". This is called being at a crossroads.
