MotoGP: Pol Espargaro Signs For KTM
Rennie Scaysbrook | June 2, 2016
Pol Espargaro will join current Tec3 Yamaha teammate Bradley Smith at KTM for 2017 and 2018.
Former Moto2 World Champion Pol Espargaro will join the factory KTM team for the 2017 and 2018 seasons as they make their debut in the MotoGP World Championship as a lone manufacturer.
Espargaro will partner current Monster Energy Tech3 Yamaha teammate Bradley Smith at KTM, the Briton having earlier signed for the Austrian manufacturer at the start of the season.
“I am going to sign with KTM for the next two years and join the new adventure with them,” Espargaro said. “New team, new bike in MotoGP. I saw the opportunity to try something different and to try and be with these guys in the future. Working together with KTM will be crazy hard, but I’m ready to work. They also showed me they’re ready to work. We have an agreement for two years and I want to thank Yamaha, Herve (Poncharal, Tech3 Team Manager) and Lin (Jarvis, Yamaha MotoGP boss) as they gave me the chance to grow in MotoGP and this is my dream come true. I have to say thanks and also to Ducati and Avintia because they showed a lot of interest too but we couldn’t go that way. Happy to face this adventure with KTM and finish this year well.”
