Aleix Espargaró

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Espargaró and the second or maternal family name is Villà.

Aleix Espargaró Villà (Catalan pronunciation: [əˈleʃ əspəɾɣəˈɾo βiˈʎa]; born 30 July 1989) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was the Spanish 2004 FIM CEV 125cc International Champion and currently competes in the MotoGP class for Aprilia Racing; however, he is due to retire from Grand Prix Racing at the end of the 2024 season.

Aleix Espargaró
Espargaró at the 2022 San Marino Grand Prix
Nationality	Spanish
Born	(1989-07-30) 30 July 1989 Granollers, Spain
Current team	Aprilia Racing
Bike number	41
Motorcycle racing career statistics MotoGP World Championship Active years 2009–2010, 2012–2024 Manufacturers Ducati (2009–2010) ART (2012–2013) Forward Yamaha (2014) Suzuki (2015–2016) Aprilia (2017–2024) Championships 0 2023 championship position 6th (206 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 243 3 11 7 4 1389 Moto2 World Championship Active years 2011 Manufacturers Pons Kalex Championships 0 2011 championship position 12th (76 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 17 0 1 0 0 76 250cc World Championship Active years 2006–2009 Manufacturers Honda (2006) Aprilia (2007–2009) Championships 0 2009 championship position 20th (22 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 44 0 0 0 0 181 125cc World Championship Active years 2004–2006 Manufacturers Honda Championships 0 2006 championship position NC (0 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 23 0 0 0 0 36

Career

Espargaró was born in Granollers, Spain. Aleix is the older brother of fellow MotoGP rider Pol Espargaro. Espargaró had his breakthrough in the 2014 MotoGP season with Forward Yamaha finishing 7th in the championship with the highlight being a 2nd-place finish in Aragon. This earned him a move to Factory Suzuki Team in 2015. In 2017 he switched to Aprilia Racing Team Gresini.

125cc International Championship

In 2004, he won the Spanish FIM CEV International Championship 125 cc class with one win, two podiums at Circuito del Jarama and 88 total points.

250cc World Championship

In 2006, Espargaró moved to the 250cc class of Grand Prix Motorcycle World Championship racing mid-season, from the 125cc class. After Sebastian Porto ended his career, Martin Cardenas replaced Porto, and Espargaró took Cardenas' spot.

MotoGP World Championship

For 2009, Espargaró was offered a deal with the Italian Campetella Racing team but they withdrew, leaving him without a permanent ride, but had two substitute appearances at Assen and Sachsenring for the Balatonring Team. He also acted as a Moto2 development rider.

Pramac Racing (2009–2010)

On 19 August 2009, it was announced Espargaró would race for Pramac Racing in MotoGP in Indianapolis and Misano. He replaced Mika Kallio, who in turn replaced Casey Stoner at the Ducati works team.

Espargaró at the 2010 British Grand Prix

On 6 October 2009, it was announced that Espargaró had signed an agreement with Pramac Ducati to race in the 2010 MotoGP Championship. He replaced Niccolò Canepa in the team. He also replaced the injured Canepa for the last two races of the 2009 season in Sepang and Valencia.

In 2010 he remained in the same team with Mika Kallio as his teammate. During the German GP Espargaró was involved in an incident with Álvaro Bautista and Randy de Puniet where he sustained a fracture of the vertebra and a small cut on the knee. His best result was two eighth places at Italy and Australia. He ended the season in 14th place with 65 points.

Moto2 World Championship

Pons HP40 (2011)

Espargaró at the 2011 German Grand Prix

In 2011 he moved to Moto2 with the Pons HP40 team, his teammate was Axel Pons. He got a podium in Catalunya and ended the season in 12th place with 76 points.

Return to MotoGP

Power Electronics Aspar (2012–2013)

Espargaro returned to the MotoGP class, his teammate was Randy De Puniet . His best result was an eighth place in Malaysia and ended the season in 12th place with 74 points, making him the highest-placed CRT rider for the 2012 Season.

In 2013 he remained on the same team. He obtained a best result of eighth place achieved at Italy, Catalonia, Netherlands and Germany and finished the season in 11th place with 93 points, once again the highest-placed CRT rider.

NGM Forward Racing (2014)

Espargaró at the 2014 Grand Prix of the Americas

In 2014 he moved to the Forward Racing team riding a Yamaha Forward with CRT specifications His teammate was Colin Edwards. He scored his first podium in MotoGP finishing second at the Aragon GP. He ended the season in 7th place with 126 points, making him the best of the riders equipped with CRT bikes for the third time in a row. He recorded his first-ever pole position at the Dutch TT at Assen, coming in his 150th Grand Prix weekend.

Team Suzuki Ecstar (2015–2016)

Espargaró at the 2015 Qatar Grand Prix

In 2015, after dominating the Open Class – previously known as CRT – he signed for the Suzuki works team to ride their new GSX-RR from 2015. His teammate was Maverick Viñales. He managed to get the second pole position of his career at the Catalonian GP, making it Suzuki's first pole since 2007. He ended the season in eleventh place with 105 points.

In 2016 he remained in the same team, achieving fourth place in Japan as his best result and finishing the season in 11th place with 93 points.

Aprilia Racing (2017–2024)

In 2017 he switched to Aprilia Racing Team Gresini, his teammate was Sam Lowes. He got two sixth places as his best result at Qatar and Aragon, ending the season in 15th place with 62 points. He was forced to miss the Malaysian Grand Prix due to a fracture of his left arm in the previous Grand Prix.

In 2018 his teammate was Scott Redding. His best result was a sixth place in Aragon and ended the season in 17th place with 44 points. He was forced to miss the German Grand Prix due to an injury sustained in warm up.

In 2019 his teammate was Andrea Iannone. His best result was a seventh place in Aragon and he finished the season in 14th place with 63 points.

In 2020 he remained with Aprilia. His best result was an eighth place in Portugal, and he ended the season in 17th place, with 42 points.

For the 2021 season, Espargaró remained with Aprilia, and his teammate at the beginning of the season was Lorenzo Savadori. The Aprilia bike immediately proved to be much more competitive, so much so that Espargaró was able to finish frequently in the top ten. In particular, at Silverstone, after starting from the second row, he finished the race in third position, giving Aprilia their first podium in MotoGP. This was Espargaró's career second podium in MotoGP, after Aragon in 2014, a wait of almost 7 years. His teammate from the Aragon race and on, was Yamaha outcast Maverick Vinales for the rest of the season.

In the third round of the 2022 campaign, Espargaró won the Argentine Republic Grand Prix from pole position. This was his first win in any class in Grand Prix motorcycling, and also Aprilia's first MotoGP win. For the rest of the season, Espargaró would remain a championship contender until the Malaysian Grand Prix, nevertheless finishing the season 4th, his highest in the premier class.

On 26 May 2022, Espargaró signed a contract extension with the team for 2023 and 2024, still teaming up with Maverick Viñales.

In the first rounds of 2023, Espargaró struggled with form, but achieved race wins at Silverstone and Barcelona. He led teammate Maverick Viñales to the first ever 1-2 finish for the factory Aprilia team in MotoGP in the latter. These results elevated Espargaró to 5th in the rider standings. However, during the last rounds of 2023, Espargaró and Aprilia were mediocre in form, with him suffering a fractured left fibula during the sprint race at the Qatar Grand Prix after a crash with Miguel Oliveira. Espargaró ended the year in 6th, 2 points ahead of his teammate.

Retirement from motorcycle racing

On May 23, 2024, Espargaro held a pre-event press conference on the week of the 2024 Barcelona-Catalunya motorcycle grand prix, where he announced he would officially retire from MotoGP at the end of the 2024 season. On July 2, 2024, Espargaró and Honda announced he would be joining the Japanese manufacturer as a test ride from the 2025 season.

Career statistics

FIM CEV International Championship

Races by year

(key)

Year	Class	Bike	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Pos	Pts
2003	125cc	Honda	R.A.C.C	CAT 12	JAR 6	ALB1 Ret	JER1 11	ALB2 7	VAL 16	JER2 11	11th	33
2004	125cc	Honda	R.A.C.C	CAT 7	JAR 1	ALB1 3	JER1 4	ALB2 12	VAL 8	JER2 11	1st	88

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

By season

Season	Class	Motorcycle	Team	Race	Win	Podium	Pole	FLap	Pts	Plcd
2004	125cc	Honda	Racc Caja Madrid	1	0	0	0	0	0	NC
2005	125cc	Honda	Seedorf RC3 – Tiempo Holidays	16	0	0	0	0	36	16th
2006	125cc	Honda	Wurth Honda BQR	6	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	250cc			9	0	0	0	0	20	19th
2007	250cc	Aprilia	Blusens Aprilia	17	0	0	0	0	47	15th
2008	250cc	Aprilia	Lotus Aprilia	16	0	0	0	0	92	12th
2009	250cc	Aprilia	Balatonring Team	2	0	0	0	0	22	20th
	MotoGP	Ducati	Pramac Racing	4	0	0	0	0	16	18th
2010	MotoGP	Ducati	Pramac Racing	18	0	0	0	0	65	14th
2011	Moto2	Pons Kalex	Pons HP40	17	0	1	0	0	76	12th
2012	MotoGP	ART	Power Electronics Aspar	18	0	0	0	0	74	12th
2013	MotoGP	ART	Power Electronics Aspar	18	0	0	0	0	93	11th
2014	MotoGP	Forward Yamaha	NGM Forward Racing	18	0	1	1	0	126	7th
2015	MotoGP	Suzuki	Team Suzuki Ecstar	18	0	0	1	0	105	11th
2016	MotoGP	Suzuki	Team Suzuki Ecstar	18	0	0	0	0	93	11th
2017	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	17	0	0	0	0	62	15th
2018	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	17	0	0	0	0	44	17th
2019	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	19	0	0	0	0	63	14th
2020	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	14	0	0	0	0	42	17th
2021	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	18	0	1	0	0	120	8th
2022	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing	20	1	6	2	2	212	4th
2023	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing	20	2	3	1	2	206	6th
2024	MotoGP	Aprilia	Aprilia Racing	13	0	0	2	1	127*	8th*
Total				334	3	12	7	5	1741

By class

Class	Seasons	1st GP	1st Pod	1st Win	Race	Win	Podiums	Pole	FLap	Pts	WChmp
125cc	2004–2006	2004 Valencia			23	0	0	0	0	36	0
250cc	2006–2009	2006 Netherlands			44	0	0	0	0	181	0
Moto2	2011	2011 Qatar	2011 Catalunya		17	0	1	0	0	76	0
MotoGP	2009–2010, 2012–present	2009 Indianapolis	2014 Aragon	2022 Argentina	240	3	11	6	4	1372	0
Total	2004–present				334	3	12	7	5	1741	0

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Class	Bike	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	Pos	Pts
2004	125cc	Honda	RSA	SPA	FRA	ITA	CAT	NED	RIO	GER	GBR	CZE	POR	JPN	QAT	MAL	AUS	VAL 24					NC	0
2005	125cc	Honda	SPA 14	POR 16	CHN 7	FRA 12	ITA 17	CAT 15	NED Ret	GBR Ret	GER 9	CZE 13	JPN 12	MAL 15	QAT 18	AUS 17	TUR 17	VAL 11					16th	36
2006	125cc	Honda	SPA Ret	QAT 17	TUR 21	CHN 16	FRA DNQ	ITA Ret	CAT Ret														NC	0
	250cc	Honda									NED 15	GBR 12	GER 15	CZE Ret	MAL 9	AUS 15	JPN Ret	POR 13	VAL 13				19th	20
2007	250cc	Aprilia	QAT 11	SPA Ret	TUR 11	CHN 11	FRA 18	ITA 12	CAT 20	GBR Ret	NED 17	GER 11	CZE 13	RSM 12	POR 12	JPN 17	AUS 14	MAL 10	VAL 12				15th	47
2008	250cc	Aprilia	QAT 9	SPA 9	POR 11	CHN 9	FRA 9	ITA 9	CAT Ret	GBR 10	NED 17	GER 13	CZE 10	RSM Ret	INP C	JPN 7	AUS 8	MAL 5	VAL 7				12th	92
2009	250cc	Aprilia	QAT	JPN	SPA	FRA	ITA	CAT	NED 4	GER 7	GBR	CZE											20th	22
	MotoGP	Ducati												INP 13	RSM 11	POR	AUS	MAL 11	VAL 13				18th	16
2010	MotoGP	Ducati	QAT Ret	SPA 15	FRA 9	ITA 8	GBR 10	NED 10	CAT Ret	GER Ret	USA Ret	CZE 12	INP 9	RSM 11	ARA 10	JPN 14	MAL Ret	AUS 8	POR Ret	VAL 11			14th	65
2011	Moto2	Pons Kalex	QAT 11	SPA 24	POR Ret	FRA 6	CAT 3	GBR 18	NED 16	ITA 9	GER Ret	CZE 6	INP 10	RSM Ret	ARA 5	JPN 31	AUS 13	MAL 8	VAL 21				12th	76
2012	MotoGP	ART	QAT 15	SPA 12	POR 12	FRA 13	CAT 13	GBR 11	NED Ret	GER 13	ITA 13	USA 9	INP 10	CZE 10	RSM Ret	ARA 10	JPN 12	MAL 8	AUS 10	VAL 11			12th	74
2013	MotoGP	ART	QAT 11	AME 11	SPA 9	FRA 13	ITA 8	CAT 8	NED 8	GER 8	USA Ret	INP 12	CZE 10	GBR 10	RSM 13	ARA 11	MAL 9	AUS 11	JPN Ret	VAL 11			11th	93
2014	MotoGP	Forward Yamaha	QAT 4	AME 9	ARG 15	SPA 7	FRA 9	ITA 9	CAT 6	NED 4	GER 6	INP Ret	CZE 8	GBR 9	RSM Ret	ARA 2	JPN 11	AUS Ret	MAL Ret	VAL 7			7th	126
2015	MotoGP	Suzuki	QAT 11	AME 8	ARG 7	SPA 7	FRA Ret	ITA Ret	CAT Ret	NED 9	GER 10	INP 14	CZE 9	GBR 9	RSM 10	ARA 6	JPN 11	AUS 9	MAL 7	VAL 8			11th	105
2016	MotoGP	Suzuki	QAT 11	ARG 11	AME 5	SPA 5	FRA 6	ITA 9	CAT Ret	NED Ret	GER 14	AUT Ret	CZE Ret	GBR 7	RSM Ret	ARA 7	JPN 4	AUS Ret	MAL 13	VAL 8			11th	93
2017	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 6	ARG Ret	AME 17	SPA 9	FRA Ret	ITA Ret	CAT Ret	NED 10	GER 7	CZE 8	AUT 13	GBR Ret	RSM Ret	ARA 6	JPN 7	AUS Ret	MAL	VAL Ret			15th	62
2018	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 19	ARG Ret	AME 10	SPA Ret	FRA 9	ITA Ret	CAT Ret	NED 13	GER DNS	CZE 15	AUT 17	GBR C	RSM 14	ARA 6	THA 13	JPN Ret	AUS 9	MAL 11	VAL Ret		17th	44
2019	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 10	ARG 9	AME Ret	SPA 11	FRA 12	ITA 11	CAT Ret	NED 12	GER Ret	CZE 18	AUT 14	GBR Ret	RSM 12	ARA 7	THA Ret	JPN 15	AUS 10	MAL 13	VAL 9		14th	63
2020	MotoGP	Aprilia	SPA Ret	ANC Ret	CZE 10	AUT 11	STY 12	RSM 13	EMI Ret	CAT 12	FRA 14	ARA 13	TER Ret	EUR Ret	VAL 9	POR 8							17th	42
2021	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 7	DOH 10	POR 6	SPA 6	FRA Ret	ITA 7	CAT Ret	GER 7	NED 8	STY Ret	AUT 10	GBR 3	ARA 4	RSM 8	AME Ret	EMI 7	ALR Ret	VAL 9			8th	120
2022	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 4	INA 9	ARG 1	AME 11	POR 3	SPA 3	FRA 3	ITA 3	CAT 5	GER 4	NED 4	GBR 9	AUT 6	RSM 6	ARA 3	JPN 16	THA 11	AUS 9	MAL 10	VAL Ret	4th	212
2023	MotoGP	Aprilia	POR 96	ARG 15	AME Ret4	SPA 5	FRA 58	ITA 68	GER 169	NED 34	GBR 15	AUT 97	CAT 11	RSM 128	IND Ret	JPN 5	INA 10	AUS 8	THA 85	MAL Ret	QAT Ret	VAL 8	6th	206
2024	MotoGP	Aprilia	QAT 83	POR 88	AME 75	SPA Ret	FRA 95	CAT 41	ITA 119	NED DNS	GER WD	GBR 63	AUT 93	ARA 10	RSM Ret	EMI 8	INA Ret	JPN 9	AUS	THA	MAL	VAL	11th*	134*

* Season still in progress.

Personal life

Espargaró's younger brother Pol is also a Grand Prix motorcycle racer, currently reserve rider for Gas-Gas KTM Tech3 in MotoGP. They competed alongside each other in Moto2 in 2011, and both have been competing in MotoGP since 2014.

Aleix Espargaro is married to Laura Montero, his long-term girlfriend. They dated for about eight years before marrying on August 23, 2014, in Barcelona. The couple had twins in 2018: their daughter Mia, and their son Max.

He is a fan of FC Barcelona and its former player Bojan, whom he finally met at the Gran Premi De Catalunya in 2012. He is noted as being a fan of Japanese cuisine, and owns restaurants located in Andorra.

External links

• Aleix Espargaró at MotoGP.com
• Aleix Espargaró at AS.com (in Spanish)