2022 was a breakthrough season for Aprilia Racing as Aleix Espargaro was right in the thick of a MotoGP™ title chase until the penultimate round of the season.
A debut Grand Prix win and five more podiums saw Aprilia’s captain make history for the Noale brand. Teammate Maverick Viñales claimed three podiums in his first full season as an RS-GP rider, signalling a successful season was had for both. But it wasn’t enough, and it’s left Aprilia craving more in 2023. The addition of a new Independent Team in the form of RNF MotoGP™ Team, with Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez at the controls, will only strengthen Aprilia’s arsenal too.
So what will Aprilia’s goal be in 2023? Quite simply, use 2022 as a learning curve and mount another title attack – this time with both their factory riders. The latter half of 2022 flattered to deceive after such a mouth-watering opening half of the campaign. Espargaro’s only podium came at the Aragon GP post summer, with Viñales claiming two – but none in the closing six races.
There’s no denying it was a disappointing end to such a promising season, however the Noale factory have emerged with a refined RS-GP for 2023. On the whole, pre-season went very well as small areas of improvement across the board have equalled a sharper weapon is underneath Espargaro and Viñales.
“We’re fast and competitive” were the words expressed by a very upbeat Viñales at the Portimao Test, as he experienced the same feelings he had back at the Sepang Test where he ended the three days in P3. Espargaro was also sounding positive about his pre-season, especially with his pace on the medium tyre – a compound he struggled with in Sepang.
One immediate worry will be the #41’s fitness coming into Round 1. After suffering from fibrosis in Portimao, Espargaro underwent surgery on his right forearm 10 days before FP1 at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
With that being the only worry for Aprilia heading into 2023, we can expect the Noale factory to really kick on this season. Espargaro and Viñales form a fearsome partnership well capable of fighting for the title, while Oliveira and Fernandez’s strong pre-season signal they’re going to be causing some factory headaches too across the grid too.
There’s an air of positivity and expectation surrounding Aprilia. Now it’s time to piece it all together across 21 Grands Prix.