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Pol Espargaro switching to KTM's rebranded affiliate GasGas / Photo: © AFP
Pol Espargaro switching to KTM's rebranded affiliate GasGas
Pol Espargaro will switch to KTM's second outfit GasGas, the rebranded team announced on Friday in a press conference ahead of the Austrian MotoGP.
The 31-year-old Spaniard is the younger brother of Aleix Espargaro who races for Aprilia.
While the 33-year-old is having a breakout season, taking his first MotoGP victory and sitting second in the championship, Pol is 17th.
Pol Espargaro raced for the KTM factory team from its entry in MotoGP in 2017 to 2020, finishing fifth in the championship in his final season, the team's best finish. He has never won a race.
In reply to Honda's tweeted thanks, he promised them on Twitter that he would be "Pushing 110% until the end!!!"
KTM has been running a second team since 2019 when it replaced Yamaha as the bike supplier for French team Tech3.
On Friday, the team announced it would rebrand next season as GasGas, a KTM-owned Spanish bike manufacturer based in Catalunya. Espargaro is also from Catalunya.
Pit Beirer the KTM head of motorsport said the KTM and GasGas bikes would be identical. He said GasGas would not a 'satellite' but a second factory team.
GasGas, Tech3 and KTM teams have all been racing in Moto3 this season and the two GasGas riders occupy the top places in the standings.
Espargaro's move will accelerate MotoGPs annual game of musical saddles.
Honda have a replacement waiting in the paddock. Six-time world champion Marc Marquez announced at Spielberg on Thursday that he was about to start rehab following a fourth operation on his right arm which he broke at the start of the 2020 season.
This season Tech3's riders have been two rookies: 24-year-old Australian Remy Gardner and 21-year-old Spaniard Raul Fernandez, who finished first and second in Moto2 last season.
While Beirer refused to name the second GasGas rider, both youngsters could be out next season.
The KTM factory team also has one more rider than it needs.
They have already announced that Australian Jack Miller will be joining next season from Ducati.
The team has said it will keep Brad Binder which left Portuguese rider Miguel Oliveira, who has four MotoGP victories, looking for a ride.
On Friday, Beirer said he wanted to keep Oliveira "in our family" and would make "a new proposal today" to the Portuguese rider.
J.Kalinski--GL
