Aleix Espargaro Remembers: ‘Best Weekend of My Life’ Last Year
Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaro returns to the Barcelona track with vivid memories, which he describes as the best weekend of his life. Last year, Espargaro claimed a historic sprint victory and completed a remarkable Aprilia one-two finish at the Grand Prix alongside team-mate Maverick Viñales.
Born in Granollers, near the Montmelo circuit, Espargaro has a special relationship with the circuit. He suffered a crushing blow in 2022 when he made a mistake on the last lap and lost his podium place. Last year, however, the situation was spectacularly reversed: he beat world champion Francesco Bagnaia in a sprint, and on Sunday he led Aprilia to a double victory.
“Barcelona is my favorite track – it’s my home race,” said Espargaro. “Tres suits my style because it has fast corners and some slow hairpins. This is a track where the bike works very well. Last year was the best weekend of my life and it won’t be easy to repeat it, but we will do everything we can to get back to the top.”
Despite finishing just once on the podium in a sprint race this season, Espargaro has yet to decide whether to continue racing in 2025. His performance in Barcelona will play a crucial role in his future decisions.
Maverick Viñales, his teammate and fellow Catalan, has a strong emotional bond with Montmelo. Viñales is currently the best non-Ducati rider in the world championship, sitting fifth, but he is yet to reach the podium after his impressive performance at COTA on Sunday. “Montmelo is my favorite song. I have many good memories here. When I’m here, I think of Luis Salom and that motivates me a lot,” Vinales said, referring to his friend who died on the track in 2016. “It’s my home race and my fan club will be there, so it’s a track I really want to do well. We are ready for a good weekend. Our mentality is to focus and give one hundred percent.”
The wait now is to see if the low grip properties of the Barcelona circuit will once again favor the Aprilia RS-GP engines this weekend. Espargaró and Viñales hope that the combination of track and bike will allow them to repeat last year’s success and provide an exciting spectacle for the local fans.
Regardless of the result, the presence of Aleix Espargaró and Maverick Viñales in Montmelo will undoubtedly evoke great emotions and fuel the enthusiasm of the Catalan fans for MotoGP. With Espargaro determined to relive the “best weekend of his life” and the enthusiastic support of the fans, the Catalan Grand Prix promises to be one of the most exciting moments of the season.
