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Aleix Espargaro Announces Retirement
The 34-year-old Spaniard Aleix Espargaro announces retirement on Thursday afternoon, just before his home race, the Catalan Grand Prix.
Espargaro’s current contract with Aprilia is set to expire at the end of this year. When he signed this deal two years ago, he admitted it would likely be his last. Despite telling the media at the Americas GP that he hadn’t decided on his plans for 2025, he has now decided to retire from racing.
“I am happy to announce my retirement as a full-time rider. It has been a wonderful 20 years in this paddock, and I am very happy and proud of what we have achieved together with Aprilia,” Espargaro said. “We made history, and that will never be forgotten. I have had so much fun, and we have created an incredible human group. We have a very nice weekend ahead of us, at a track I like and where I am fast, and there are still plenty of races left until Valencia to be competitive.”
Espargaro made his MotoGP debut in 2009 as a replacement rider for Pramac Ducati at the Indianapolis GP, finishing his maiden race in 13th place and scoring points. He made four appearances that year, each resulting in points, before securing a full-time position with Pramac for the 2010 season.
Despite an injury-affected season in 2010, he achieved a best finish of eighth place. In 2011, Espargaro returned to the intermediate class, finishing 12th in the Moto2 standings and earning his first Grand Prix podium in Barcelona.
In 2012, he returned to MotoGP with the Aspar team, riding an Aprilia-powered CRT machine. Espargaro scored points in all but two rounds, finishing the season as the top CRT rider.
Espargaro secured a factory deal in 2015, joining the fledgling Suzuki project alongside his current Aprilia teammate, Maverick Vinales. He played a key role in developing the GSX-RR, which would eventually win the championship with Joan Mir in 2020. Although Espargaro was a consistent top-eight contender, he never matched Vinales’s race-winning performances.
In 2017, Espargaro moved to Aprilia’s factory team, where he maximized the potential of a bike often not considered MotoGP-worthy during his first three seasons. After a particularly challenging 2019, he contemplated retirement but chose to continue with Aprilia into 2020.
In 2021, Espargaro made history at the British GP by securing Aprilia’s first MotoGP podium with a third-place finish at Silverstone. He continued his success in 2022, achieving his and the team’s first win in Argentina. He was a championship contender in 2022 until the latter stages. Although a title challenge did not materialize in the inconsistent 2023 season for Aprilia, he still managed to win two Grands Prix.
Throughout his Grand Prix racing career, Espargaro has been an outspoken advocate for safety in the championship, consistently pushing for necessary changes.
Source : motorsport.com