Three-time MotoGP championship runner-up Dani Pedrosa will make a shock return to racing for KTM at this 12 months’s Spanish Grand Prix, in solely his second wildcard look since becoming a member of the Austrian agency as its take a look at rider in 2019.
Requested by the media throughout KTM’s 2023 season launch concerning the significance of Pedrosa’s persevering with position throughout the group as take a look at rider, group supervisor Francesco Guidotti revealed that he had been knowledgeable solely minutes earlier than becoming a member of the media that Pedrosa’s wildcard look for Jerez had been accepted by the organisers, clearing the best way for his 219th MotoGP race begin.
“It exhibits how essential he’s for us,” mentioned Guidotti.
“The contribution he may give us is kind of excessive, and we are attempting to place him within the place to specific his potential in the course of the take a look at and naturally additionally in the course of the wildcard.”
Pedrosa was initially scheduled to seem as a wildcard for the group in 2020, till the COVID-19 pandemic meant all visitor appearances had been suspended for all the season.
He then returned to motion on the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix at KTM’s dwelling venue the Purple Bull Ring for a quick and considerably abortive look.
Pedrosa crashed at Flip 3 on the opening lap of the race, high-siding on the exit of the nook and leaving his bike in the course of the monitor and within the path of Aprilia rider Lorenzo Savadori, who struck it, bringing out the crimson flags when his Aprilia subsequently burst into flames.
In a position to restart on his second bike, Pedrosa was additionally in a position to present his expertise, nevertheless, by coming dwelling a formidable tenth, the second of KTM’s 5 machines.
“I loved it, I had enjoyable all weekend, and I’m tremendous happy with the way it went all weekend,” enthused Pedrosa, who had till then been notoriously reluctant to make a wildcard look for KTM, afterwards.
“I even assume that it’d click on somewhat right here and there, if I had gone somewhat quicker in FP3 to go on to Q2, to be one or two rows extra in entrance.
“That might have modified the entire image and it may have been even higher – however no complaining!
“I don’t assume we will make something higher from right here to the subsequent wildcard date that we’ve.
“It’s attention-grabbing to see issues and to vary them, however I don’t assume we’ve time to make something completely different, however I’m pleased and happy.”
He was additionally initially set to reappear a couple of weeks later for the San Marino Grand Prix at Misano, however that wildcard was then withdrawn following the Purple Bull Ring crash, with the group admitting that the danger of damage, as highlighted in Austria, was too excessive for Pedrosa at an important time within the improvement of the 2022 bike.
“Dani is mainly not in our planning for Misano, we took it off [the plan],” mentioned KTM motorsport boss Pit Beirer on the time.
“He had that one race in Spielberg and I don’t assume we’re going to see him racing once more. So, we simply stopped it there.”
Nonetheless, after a disappointing 2022 season and with a big change to its rider line-up following the departures of Miguel Oliveira, Remy Gardner and Raul Fernandez, KTM has clearly determined it’s the proper time to get enter from its ultra-experienced take a look at rider in a racing state of affairs once more.
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