Dani Pedrosa will once again contest his home Grand Prix in Jerez with KTM this year – Pol Espargaro is set to make his MotoGP comeback at Mugello
KTM has officially announced its first wildcards for the 2024 MotoGP season. Test rider Dani Pedrosa will join the Austrian manufacturer on the track at the next Grand Prix in Jerez. Pol Espargaro will be able to take to the track a little later in the season at Mugello (May 31 to June 2).
Both dates are no coincidence, as the weekends are each followed by an official Monday test. KTM sees the wildcard events “as part of the work plan (…) to continue the development of the KTM RC16 both for the rest of the current season and with a view to 2025 and beyond.”
Pedrosa, who has been a test rider for KTM since his retirement at the end of 2018, has so far competed in three races as a wildcard rider – one in 2021 and the other two last year.
The Spaniard knew how to impress: At the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix, he finished sixth in the sprint and seventh in the long race. In San Marino, he finished fourth in both races, narrowly missing out on his first podium since 2017.
“I had a lot of fun in Jerez last year and the reception from the fans was incredible,” said Pedrosa, looking back and looking forward to his return. “We all know that Jerez is a special place. It will also be important for us to use some references for our tests and transfer them to race conditions. “
Espargaro will be his “old self” after injury
Espargaro rode as a regular rider in MotoGP up to and including 2023, but lost his place at Tech3-GasGas at the end of the year when Moto2 champion Pedro Acosta was promoted.
Espargaro then took on the role of test and replacement rider. The Italian Grand Prix will be his first race outing since the 2023 season finale in Valencia. “I’m really looking forward to racing again,” he says.
He is all the more pleased that he will be racing in Mugello of all places. “It’s a very special place to get on a MotoGP bike. It will be cool to be back on the grid with the guys. The tests went really well and I’m very motivated,” emphasized the 32-year-old.
After his accident at the start of the 2023 MotoGP season in Portimao, he now feels “more like my ‘old self'”. Accordingly, he is looking forward to “being part of the MotoGP family again and showing that our test work is strong and fast.”
Pit Beirer raves about the KTM test team
KTM Head of Motorsport Pit Beier agrees, saying: “We have a damn strong test team.” The two wildcard outings with Pedrosa and Espargaro were “highlights”.
And he explains: “The fact that Dani agrees to a wildcard outing means that the bike is good and he feels comfortable with it. Otherwise he wouldn’t do it. So I am sure that he is ready to show us a strong race in Jerez.”
“And it’s similar with Pol. He unfortunately had to leave the big stage, he wasn’t fully fit. But he has had time to recover and has already completed many laps with us. It will be great to see him back in the race,” says Beirer happily.
“But we’re trying to keep him calm,” adds the KTM boss, “because he doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone. We just want him to enjoy this race weekend.”
As a Category C manufacturer, KTM is entitled to a maximum of six wildcards per season under the new concession rules. Pedrosa and Espargaro could therefore race up to four more times. However, KTM has repeatedly stated that it is unlikely to use all the wildcards
