Dani Pedrosa is being tempted by Red Bull KTM Factory team. Will he join them or stay at Repsol Honda?
MotoGP is heading for the second round of the season in Argentina this weekend, but before all the teams and riders arrive at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit, rider contracts are still being discussed everywhere.
One of the teams that is looking to change its riders is Red Bull KTM.
Mike Leitner, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team manager, has spoken to German news portal SpeedWeek saying that “Dani Pedrosa would be a fantastic solution” to the MotoGP project of the Austrian manufacturer.
Dani Pedrosa is one of the oldest riders competing in MotoGP, and although he hasn’t won a MotoGP title, he’s considered one of the best riders around, so there are teams willing to do an effort to snatch Pedrosa from the Repsol Honda team where he’s been competing since moving from the 250 cc class to the top tier in Grand Prix World Championship.
KTM’s effort in MotoGP is set to take a big step in 2019, with the brand getting a total of four factory prototypes on track. Besides the factory Red Bull KTM team, there’ll be two KTM RC16’s for the Tech3 team managed by Hervé Poncharal.
So, it’s only natural that Mike Leitner is looking to improve the team with different riders, and besides trying to secure Johann Zarco, one of the most desirable riders at the moment, KTM is now interested in negotiating with Dani Pedrosa.
Who will get a seat on the RC16 prototype from KTM?
Mike Leitner says that “At the moment we’re talking with a few riders. We need to see how the market evolves. When more riders have signed their new contracts, then everything will be clearer. At this moment we need to think of going in every direction. Dani is one of the top riders in MotoGP. That’s a fact. But this is a decision he needs to make on his own”.
Will KTM manage to secure Dani Pedrosa from 2019 onwards or will the Spanish rider retain his seat in the Repsol Honda team alongside Marc Marquez?
We’ll need to wait and see.
But with Ducati wanting to seal a new deal with Andrea Dovizioso by beginning of May, and with the Italian rider negotiating with Honda and Suzuki, the rider transfers market will surely heat up in the coming weeks!