The Hard Yards: Getting ready for MotoGP™ riding
Red Bull KTM riders Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaró explain some of the demands and criteria for being in shape to cope with the rigors of MotoGP™.
Red Bull KTM riders Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaró explain some of the demands and criteria for being in shape to cope with the rigors of MotoGP™.
During the past season, the KTM RC16 – the MotoGP™ bike from KTM – has been causing something of a furor amongst the established brands. Almost straight out of the gate it was helping riders to score world championship points and land top 10 spots. And exactly 10 years ago the KTM 1190 RC8, one of KTM’s first superbikes, went into production, causing quite a stir before it even went on sale.
Less than two months before the opening Grand Prix in Qatar on March 18, the MotoGP™ teams conduct the first official IRTA test of the 2018 season.
Grand Prix wins and world championships mean that Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaró know all about the spoils of MotoGPTM but 2017 was the first year for both as factory riders. We asked them about the experience …
Impressive, magnificent, and a whole host of other superlatives – that’s the kind of thing you’d have heard when talk turned to the Red Bull KTM MotoGP Factory Racing Team following the MotoGPTM 2017 season finale. In its very first season, KTM has become a heavyweight on the Grand Prix-circuit. There were, of course, some setbacks along the way, but the final standings after all that hard work show a team heading in the right direction – and straight for the top.
Could one of the greatest motocrossers ever be eying a career change? Tony Cairoli’s appetite and curiosity to try a new MotoGPTM machine was satisfied last week in Valencia. We’ve seen the images so now hear what the Sicilian had to say on his KTM RC16 debut.
We’ve come to learn a lot about the demands of MotoGP™ thanks to Red Bull KTM’s exploits through a 2016 of testing and now a maiden season in the Grand Prix paddock but we decided to ask Pol Espargaró’s Chief Mechanic Christophe Leonce a bit more about having a job in the orange and blue shirt …
What’s it like to build and govern a MotoGPTM setup from scratch? We grabbed some time with the man at the peak of the Red Bull KTM operation to find out.
It was only last year that the MotoGP™ returned to Austria for the first time in 19 years and it was that event where KTM for the first time presented its KTM RC16 project to the public. One year later, more than 201,580 people came to see and cheer their heroes during the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, the second highest number of fans attending a race so far in 2017.
Besides their bright company color, the Red Bull KTM MotoGP™ Factory Racing outfit also has an extra hint of orange to it, solely supplied by Gerald Perdon. The Dutchman is responsible for Bradley Smith’s suspension and at Perdon’s home round at Assen he gave us a behind the scenes look at what goes on.
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