Aprilia is currently in second place in the MotoGP Constructors’ Championship, only behind the dominant Ducati – being the only team to prevent the Borgo Panigale manufacturer from winning in 2024 when Maverick Viñales triumphed at the Americas GP.
In the Sprint races, only Aprilia managed to take victories away from Ducati riders, and in qualifying, they have the only three non-Ducati pole positions. However, the results remain inconsistent, often with a noticeable drop in performance between qualifying and Sunday’s race.
Carlo Pernat believes that the riders – Viñales and Aleix Espargaró – might be the cause: ‘Some disappointment from Aprilia, because I think it’s a matter of the riders; in my opinion, the bike is there. It took pole at Silverstone, but then in the race, they disappeared’.
In a column for the site GPOne.com, the rider manager and columnist also stated: ‘This might be justifiable for Aleix Espargaró, who will retire at the end of the year, but it’s less justifiable for Viñales, who should also show something more before he moves to KTM next year’.