Dani Pedrosa and Pol Espargaro will each race one wildcard MotoGP race in 2024, as confirmed by KTM.
Announced by KTM during this weekend’s MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas, Pedrosa will return as a wildcard to the Spanish Grand Prix, where last year he finished sixth in the Sprint and seventh in the Grand Prix, and also topped the first practice of the weekend on Friday morning.
The reason for the choice of Jerez as a track for KTM to field a wildcard rider is that the race there is followed by an official post-race test on the Monday after. The same is true of the Italian Grand Prix in Mugello, where KTM will field Pol Espargaro as a wildcard.
On the announcement of his 2024 Spanish Grand Prix wildcard, Dani Pedrosa said: “I had a lot of fun at Jerez last year and the welcome from the fans was amazing. We all know Jerez is a special place. For us it will also be important to use some references for our tests and put it into the race environment again. This is the main reason to compete in 2024.”
Pol Espargaro, speaking on his upcoming Italian GP wildcard, added: “Really happy to be racing again and especially at Mugello, which is a very special place to get on a MotoGP bike. It will be cool to be back on the grid with the guys. Testing has been going really well and I’m very motivated. I am more like my ‘old self’ after the injury of 2023. I’m looking forward to being right back into the MotoGP ‘family’ and showing that our testing work is strong and fast.”
The third and final official in-season MotoGP test of 2024 will take place at Misano on the day after the San Marino Grand Prix, where Pedrosa finished fourth, and as the best KTM rider, in both the Sprint and Grand Prix last year.
Find all the latest MotoGP news on Visordown.
