POINT TO PROVE

Aleix Espargaró is set to become a player with a hugely improved RS-GP

● ‘Aprilia are the only factory to bring an all new bike to the grid’

● ‘Aprilia’s new RS-GP is no longer the slowest bike on the grid’

Is Aleix Espargaró one of the most underrated riders on the MotoGP grid? That is the question that looks set to be answered in 2020 as for the first time since he joined Aprilia’s MotoGP project in 2017 he won’t be taking a knife to a gun fight.

Aprilia are the only factory to bring an all-new bike to the party in 2020 and early signs are positive – so positive in fact that the 30-year-old Spaniard shed tears of joy after ending the Sepang test just 0.345s off the pace. Aprilia’s new 90-degree V4 is no longer the slowest bike on the grid, and while it’s still early days in terms of development the signs from recent tests appear to be overwhelmingly positive for the Italian manufacturer. Test rider Bradley Smith commented after his first ride of the 2020 bike that “every area had been improved”, a statement born out from the get-go with Smith quicker on the new bike than with the familiar 2019 version within just a handful of laps. Espargaró offered the same feedback first time out and his emotional reaction to the new bike must also be based on relief. Relief that after 10 years as a MotoGP rider he will finally be able to show his full potential. There have been flashes of what he’s capable of, especially at Aragon where he’s finished seventh and sixth over the last two years despite being on the weakest bike on the grid.

Last week’s test in Qatar also underlined the potential of the new Aprilia project with Espargaró 0.574s adrift after three days on track. A result that incredibly saw him down in 13th place – such is the level of competition in MotoGP 2020.

There’s clearly still a long way to go before Aprilia can be talked about in the same sentence as Honda and Ducati, but the signs are there. And while Espargaró is a MotoGP veteran, he’s probably one of the hungriest riders on the grid having spent a career under achieving due to un-competitive machinery.