David de Gea was born in Cehegín (Murcia) in 1977. His first outing on a motorbike was on a Kawasaki 80cc in a motocross race when he was 11. After a few years in motocross he began racing in 50cc road racing events and it wasn’t long before he experienced his first success. Aged 16 he was given the opportunity of a Grand Prix ride in Montmeló, and the following season he rode a Honda RS 125 to several respectable placings – competing with some of the top riders on the way. De Gea then competed in European competition before returning to the world stage on Jose Luis Cardoso’s Honda TSR 500 V2 in 1999, scoring one race point before finishing the season with Kenny Roberts’ Modenas team. The Spaniard stayed with Modenas for 2000, scoring points in seven of the nine GPs he contested, and lines up in 2001 with the Antena 3 Luis d’Antin team in the 250 class.