Yet again two extra names have appeared on the entry list for the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya, both returning names. For the second time in 2016 Albert Arenas (MRW Mahindra Aspar Team) will run with the World Championship, his first race in Jerez saw him take 18th and just miss out on points. He’s been working hard to improve both himself and the Mahindra in the FIM CEV Repsol Moto3™ Junior World Championship, scoring points in each round. Of the three wildcards, Arenas is the only one from Spain.
He’ll be joined on the grid by fellow Junior World Championship rider Davide Pizzoli (Procercasa – 42 Motorsport Team). Pizzoli raced in Jerez and was scheduled to run in both Le Mans and Mugello, but withdrew due to an injured foot. In Jerez he took 20th after qualifying in 28th position. The Italian is currently 21st in the Junior World Championship standings, having scored just once at the second race in Valencia.
Ramdan Rosli (Petronas AHM Malaysia) will join the Moto2™ World Championship for the weekend, the Malaysian also making the step over from the FIM CEV Repsol series. 2016 is Rosli’s second year in the Moto2™ European Championship, now a frequent runner inside the top ten. His results remain mixed in the Spanish series after two rounds, crashes ending promising races early. This won’t be Rosli’s first step up to the big leagues, having run in Barcelona and Sepang in 2015. Both those appearances ended outside the points with 26th and 24th place finishes respectively.
While not a wildcard this weekend, Michele Pirro will once more be back on the MotoGP™ World Championship grid. The Italian will run with Avintia Racing colours for the first time as he steps in to replace Loris Baz (Avintia Racing) on the GP14.2. This ride comes just a fortnight after Pirro took a great tenth place finish in Mugello, proving he clearly has the pace to battle with the full time riders. Twice Pirro has finished 14th in Barcelona while running in the premier class, his best finish a tenth in 2013 when replacing Ben Spies at Pramac.
Be sure to follow the progress of all the wildcards from 09:00 Local Time on Friday when the Catalan GP begins.