Raul Fernandez: ‘2024 Aprilia Won’t Be Dramatically Faster’

Raul Fernandez, a rider for the Trackhouse team, is tempering his expectations regarding the upgrade to the 2024 Aprilia RS-GP, which will be introduced from the next MotoGP round at Silverstone. Currently competing with the 2023-spec machine, Fernandez is the sole Aprilia rider in this configuration for the season.

Nevertheless, Fernandez has showcased his skills by qualifying on the front row twice, in Catalonia and Germany. In Barcelona, he briefly led the Sprint before finishing sixth in the race, while at Sachsenring, increasing front tire pressure relegated him to 14th in the Sprint, ultimately finishing tenth in the race.

“There was a mistake… For some reason, it wasn’t the correct pressure to extract the maximum potential from the tire,” explained Fernandez. “But we are a team, we win or lose together, and they gave me a good bike to qualify on the front row.”

However, the Spanish rider faced challenges with rear tire grip throughout the race, affecting his performance in the final 15 laps.

“During the first half of the race, I was there, fighting with all the Ducatis and with Miguel,” commented Fernandez, who battled directly behind Oliveira in eighth place during the middle stages.

Fernandez is now looking forward to his debut with the 2024 Aprilia RS-GP. Although he retains the same engine specification due to homologation rules, he hopes to receive a new aerodynamic update mid-season for the British GP.

However, in terms of performance, Fernandez does not expect a radical difference with the new bike. “It won’t be one second faster,” he affirmed about the ’24 RS-GP, which he briefly tested in Jerez in April. “But perhaps it will be easier to preserve the tire with the new bike.”

“I only did one test with two sessions, so I don’t know what to expect. Certainly, if Aprilia opted for this new bike, it’s because they saw something positive. Moreover, the lap times compared to last year are quite strong. So yes, I believe the new bike will be slightly better, but it definitely won’t be one second faster.”

Oliveira’s strong performance at Sachsenring has placed him ahead of Fernandez, now 13th in the riders’ standings. Neither has signed a contract for 2025 yet, keeping the future of the Aprilia team a topic of ongoing speculation in the MotoGP paddock.