The 2023 season for Aleix Espargaró: Two victories, but expectations to be achieved

After the competitive leap that Aprilia took last year, the bar was set high for 2023, aiming to get even closer to the MotoGP title. However, unlike in 2022, Aleix Espargaró never truly entered that fight and finished the championship only in sixth place.

If teammate Maverick Viñales started with a podium, the more veteran of the Spaniards had a turbulent start: in the first three rounds he didn’t achieve any top five in main races, falling behind early in the fight for important goals in the World Championship. Despite the pole position in the Spanish GP, he had to wait even longer for the first podium, which only came at the Dutch GP before the summer break.

The beginning of the second part of the season was promising for Espargaró. In Silverstone, one of his favorite tracks, he achieved the first triumph of the year. A result that opened up good prospects for the remainder of the season. At the time, #41 commented that after very high expectations, he made many mistakes and did not achieve the results that his speed would allow: – It’s a good feeling. I am very happy to be back on top. Maybe at the beginning of the season the expectations were too high on me, in the team, so I made too many mistakes. […] I lost many points. I had good speed […] I was very close to Pecco [Bagnaia], leading, but it doesn’t matter: you have to be fast on Sunday. For one reason or another, I was not able to really match my speed with results. Not surprisingly, considering the characteristics of the Aprilia, the Austrian GP ended with a modest ninth place for Espargaró, who reacted with a remarkable dominance to victory in the Catalan GP in a one-two for the Noale constructor. A result he spoke about in a press conference: ‘I am very happy for Aprilia. I think it is a very historic moment. I am very proud of Aprilia, because we have come a long, long way. And Aprilia has to be very proud of me and Maverick, because together we have done a fantastic and historic job’.

Two wins in three rounds after the summer break. Was Espargaró on his way to an unlikely comeback to join the title fight? Time gave a negative answer: from then on, the results broke, there were some problems – he abandoned on three occasions – and he only managed one more top five. Thus, he ended up losing the top five in the championship, being overtaken by Johann Zarco (Pramac/Ducati) in Malaysia.

Once again, Espargaró showed signs of a competitive Aprilia, but lacked consistency in performance at various moments of the season. He also seems to not have had the best possible adaptation to the Sprint races: apart from the victory in Barcelona, he only finished among the top five four times. There is a feeling that there is potential for more, and in 2024 the rider may try again to prove it in what could be his last season of his career.

2023 Season of Aleix Espargaró:

GP of Portugal: 6th Sprint/9th GP – 7th in the championship GP of Argentina: Abandonment Sprint/15th GP – 13th in the championship GP of the Americas: 4th Sprint/Abandonment GP – 13th in the championship GP of Spain: Abandonment Sprint/5th GP – 13th in the championship GP of France: 8th Sprint/5th GP – 11th in the championship GP of Italy: 8th Sprint/6th GP – 9th in the championship GP of Germany: 9th Sprint/16th GP – 9th in the championship GP of the Netherlands: 4th Sprint/3rd GP – 8th in the championship GP of Great Britain: 5th Sprint/1st GP – 6th in the championship GP of Austria: 7th Sprint/9th GP – 7th in the championship GP of Catalonia: 1st Sprint/1st GP – 5th in the championship GP of San Marino: 8th Sprint/12th GP – 5th in the championship GP of India: Abandonment in Sprint and GP – 5th in the championship GP of Japan: Abandonment Sprint/5th GP – 5th in the championship GP of Indonesia: Abandonment Sprint/10th GP – 5th in the championship GP of Australia: 8th GP (no Sprint race) – 6th in the championship GP of Thailand: 5th Sprint/8th GP – 5th in the championship GP of Malaysia: 12th Sprint/Abandonment GP – 6th in the championship GP of Qatar: Abandonment in Sprint and GP – 6th in the championship GP of Valencia: 13th Sprint/8th GP – 6th in the championship