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Maybe no one expected a few weeks ago that Pol Espargarò would become a big name in the MotoGP market, yet he has. His story is rapidly turning into a bit of a mystery with insinuations and rumours with no one actually denying or confirming anything. The agreement between Honda and the Spaniard, however, seems to be the world’s worst-kept secret, even though Stefan Pierer, CEO of KTM, has said clearly that things will not be resolved in a short time.
“The question of whether Pol will stay with KTM is still open for us. A decision will be made at the latest by September 15," he told Speedweek.
His words suggest that KTM has an option with Pol, a right of first refusal, if you prefer. They are quite common clauses in contracts, so you can balance the offer of another manufacturer and keep your rider with you.
This is in theory, because in practice things are often different because everyone knows how counterproductive it can be to force a rider to race where he doesn't want to. For sure, the official Honda team is not just any old team, it is a place where you aim to win, something that KTM currently does not allow you to do.
The move by the Austrian manufacturer might be to try and make Espargarò change his mind with the facts. By taking time until mid-September, it would allow Pol to dispute the first races and to evaluate the progress made by his bike and make him ‘fall in love’ with the project again, should you wish to be romantic about it. Or, not to put too fine a point on it, convince him with the money: perhaps by tweaking upwards an offer that already exceeds 2 million euros per season and perhaps by thinking of a (very) long-term contract, such as Marc Marquez’s four-year deal with HRC.
Without a doubt, KTM received a nice kick in the balls from Honda and another one came from Ducati, which has nabbed Jorge Martin. Now it’s trying to take remedial action, although it may not be so easy to reconfirm all its riders.
“We had no intention of being active on the market, our goal is to keep all our riders with us. We would like to invest the money in the bike,” added Pierer.
That’s easier said than done however as there’s Honda in the middle and now the promising young KTM team has to make amends, but it lacks experience. Oliveira, Binder and Lecuona do not yet have the ability to guide development and they cannot put everything on the shoulders of Dani Pedrosa, who has no intention of racing either and who therefore plays a limited role.
The most likely options on the market are represented by Danilo Petrucci and Cal Crutchlow; in theory there is no great hurry to close with either one of the two, but on the other hand waiting could prove to be not such a wise move…
