After announcing his decision to retire at the Catalunya GP, Barcelona, Spain, it was then rumored that Aleix Espargaro would seek a role as a test racer. Initially it was rumored that he would remain at a manufacturer other than Aprilia as a tester, but rumors also emerged that he would go to Honda. Today, Honda officially signed Aleix Espargaro as its MotoGP test rider for the 2025 season.
Previously, Honda had acted quickly after both parties had almost reached an agreement in pre-contract talks. And the results of the agreement have now been official and announced to the public where Espargaro will lead the Honda-HRC test program together with the current HRC test rider – Stefan Bradl.
Honda, which is experiencing the worst times in the history of their participation in MotoGP Grand Prix racing, feels the need to recruit someone with talent and experience like Espargaro, and conditions like this will be very valuable for accelerating the development of their motorbike.
A Honda Racing Corporation statement confirmed Espargaro as their new test rider alongside Bradl and not as a replacement for the German: “Honda Racing Corporation will strengthen their testing program with Aleix Espargaro joining as test rider in 2025.
“With almost 250 races in the premier class, the 34-year-old has a wealth of experience on a Grand Prix bike and also has three wins and more than 1,300 MotoGP points. He will join HRC’s flagship racer, Stefan Bradl, to continue the development of the Honda RC213V.”
Aleix Espargaro missed last weekend’s Dutch MotoGP after suffering two major crashes, breaking the fifth metacarpal bone in his right hand in a crash that occurred on the final lap of the Sprint race. Espargaro was informed that he would undergo magnetotherapy to speed up the recovery process and could appear at this weekend’s German MotoGP at the Sachsenring.
Will Aleix Espargaro be one of the key figures in Honda’s return to the front pack? We hope that HRC can take advantage of Aleix Espargaro’s experience while at Aprilia in the development of the leading RSGP there, which was praised for being considered quite successful in turning Aprilia from a manufacturer that was always behind into a race-winning motorbike. Aleix Espargaro’s presence while directly participating in the Aprilia RSGP development project has played an important role as the RS-GP’s weaknesses are slowly being overcome one by one.
