Almost 100 youngsters will this season become Aspar Team riders as the team expands its grass roots commitment with a new collaboration with KSB Sport and the Liga Española de Motociclismo, providing a passage for youngsters all the way from minibike racing to MotoGP.
The new Aspar Team project for 2016 was presented this afternoon at the Auditorio Mar Rojo del Oceanogràfic, part of the famous ‘City of Arts and Sciences’ in Valencia. Several hundred guests attended the presentation to witness first hand the Aspar Team’s renewed commitment to motorcycle racing on every level, from those first tentative few laps as a six year old right through to the elite level of the sport.
Yonny Hernández and Eugene Laverty, who recently scored the team’s best ever result in MotoGP with his fourth place in the Grand Prix of Argentina, spearhead the project this season as they contest the premier-class championship on board their Ducati Desmosedici GP 14.2 machines. Alongside the two MotoGP riders in the World Championship paddock are Moto3 contenders Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martín, who are contesting the eighteen-round championship on their Mahindras.
The project continues in the Moto3 Junior World Championship with a two-rider line-up. Valencia’s very own Aarón Polanco is competing in his third season with the MRW Aspar Team, whilst Albert Arenas has also joined this year.
The prior level to that, the Spanish Championship (Campeonato de España de Velocidad or CEV), sees the Aspar Team making their presence felt with three riders across three categories, with Iván Ortolá racing in Challenge 80, Álvaro Díaz in PreMoto3 and Borja Sánchez in the top class, Moto3.
In order to get riders to this level the Aspar Team are investing in grass roots racing thanks to their union with the KSB Sport and Liga Española de Motociclismo (LEM) schools, which are directed by Kike Bañuls. The Aspar KSB LEM schools will have around ninety riders, creating the perfect route from base level racing to the very pinnacle of the World Championship. The rider schools have a decade of experience and an exhaustive programme.
The LEM promote values of teamwork, comradeship, effort and education over rivalries, encouraging ‘learning and enjoyment above racing.’ The objective of Aspar KSB LEM is to see students develop in a healthy and enjoyable environment.
The idea behind the union between Jorge Martínez ‘Aspar’, KSB and the Liga Española de Motociclismo is to ensure the correct development of young riders, from Valencia and other regions of Spain, and even from other countries. The collaboration agreement with KSB will guarantee that the best young riders can follow the right path to the World Championship.
Jorge Martínez ‘Aspar’: “Today’s presentation marks the start of a new era for the Aspar Team, along with KSB and LEM. It is an innovative project, unique, in that it is a private team with a rider school and sports management, in every category all the way to the World Championship. We will take riders from the school to 80cc, PreMoto3 and Moto3 in the CEV, Moto3 Junior World Championship and finally the Moto3 and MotoGP World Championship. It turns us into the biggest private team in the world and the only way to begin a career at eight years of age and finish up in MotoGP with the same team. It is a very exciting project. We are really looking forward to seeing the young talent and future riders coming in from all over the Comunidad Valenciana, from Spain and from around the world, so I am very excited and happy to launch this new era for the Aspar Team”.
Jorge Martín: “The season has not started as we wanted because we have been unlucky but I still feel this is going to be a good year. We are improving the bike and we are faster than we were last year so my objective is to fight with the leaders. I will also be keeping an eye on the school this year, it is a very ambitious project. I would say to all the riders that they have a long, hard path ahead of them but everything happens through effort so I hope they give their best when they are on track.”
Pecco Bagnaia: “This year I just want to give 100% in every race and enjoy every moment. I want to be consistently at the front, fighting for top finishes, like we did at Qatar and Jerez, but when that’s not possible we have to keep picking up points. I just want to say to the kids at the school to always enjoy themselves, to have fun on the bike but always remember to keep improving step by step.”
Yonny Hernández: “We have started the year well but we need to keep working and keep improving to be consistently finishing in the top ten or twelve. We will keep fighting to make that happen over the remainder of the season and to set a good example for these kids that are joining the school. The youth are the future of motorcycling and it is good to give them support and to teach them, which will happen thanks to this collaboration between KSB Sport and the Aspar Team. These kids are keen and determined, so my advice is to be disciplined, always think positive and never to give up or stop fighting for their dream.”
Eugene Laverty: “After the Jerez race we have a clear direction to follow. We scored a great result in Argentina but the Spanish Grand Prix was the first time we saw our true potential. From now on my goal is to keep fighting to finish as the top independent rider. I missed out by just a second and a half at Jerez. As far as the school is concerned I am really happy that there is an initiative like this in place for kids from six years old. It is a great opportunity for them and it will produce high quality riders from a young age.”