At a press conference at the CryptoDATA Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, Spanish brand GasGas announced its intention to join the MotoGP grid in 2023. Tech3 Factory Racing will manage the effort, and plans are to field two riders during the initial season.
Pol Espargaró was revealed to be the lead rider, with his teammate to be announced at a later date.
“GasGas is a winning brand,” GasGas Motorsports Director Pit Beirer said during the press conference. “It has reached an incredible level of performance immediately in disciplines like MXGP, Supercross, Enduro, and Rally where we have taken Grands Prix, Main Events, world titles, and overall winners’ trophies. It’s a relatively new brand for us and we have new goals. We hope the fans that follow ‘the red’ will enjoy the story. Thanks to our strong partner, the Aspar team, in Moto3 and Moto2 we have been able to see the GasGas bikes right at the front of those categories. It would be great to see the same thing eventually in the hardest class of them all.”
Tech3 Race Team Principal Hervé Poncharal said, “Since we joined the Pierer Mobility Group, I can tell you that it has been my happiest professional years in my life. Because, when you work with Stefan, when you work with Hubert, and when you work with Pit, of course, the target and the main thing is competition, but I also love to spend evenings with these gentlemen to talk about business, to talk about strategy, to see how our motorcycle industry is evolving. I’m really, really happy to be part of a European manufacturer and the European manufacturers all together are moving on; we can see every single Sunday on the MotoGP podium that they are more and more. To be a full factory GasGas team is a big source of pride.”
With GasGas’ entry into the 2023 field, there will be six different manufacturers on the grid, considering Suzuki’s decision to leave the premier class after the 2022 season. Next year’s marques include Honda, Yamaha, Ducati, KTM, Aprilia, and GasGas.
Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com