It’s not a metaphor: in Sepang the members of the two teams will have the pits side by side and completely open: dig at Yamaha: “Aprilia wants to see Oliveira and Fernandez challenge Aleix and Vinales”
February 7, 2023
Journalist Peter McLaren interviewed the RNF Aprilia team manager for Crash.net Razlan Razali. The Malaysian, a figure discussed above all in Italy after the years in which he had in the team Valentino Rossi e Andrea Dovizioso (see the three related articles below), talked about differences between the Yamaha and the Aprilia.
“Aprilia – Razali said – wants to see Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez challenge the official MotoGP stars Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vinales this season”.
In short, for Razali no hierarchy between the two teams: “The goal is very clear. They want to see us, if possible, in front of the boys of the official team. It’s something that doesn’t happen elsewhere” and given Razali’s recent “other parts” are the Yamaha la dig it is clear and direct.
However, its pilots will have the moto 2022: “I’m confident that if they do well, Aprilia will give them the maximum possible support. Because if they do well, they will be able to join the official team. And we will have to find new riders”.
No walls
Razali was at this week’s test driver tests and spoke with the top management of Apriliasuch as the managing director Massimo Rivola, the technical director Romano Albesiano and the team manager Paolo Bonora.
On the new relationship with Aprilia: “This year seems very different for me too. Especially the relationship with Aprilia. The communication between Massimo, Paolo with Wilco and our boys is fantastic. There is not no barrier as there was instead with the Japanese House. We know exactly who we are talking to. We’re talking to the engine guys, or the aero guy. They tell us exactly what happens. Transparency is fantastic.”
In the Sepang test scheduled for these days the two teams will be side by side and the internal metal wall will be removed: the members of the two teams will be able to move freely between the two pits: “We can go in and out. That’s the kind of thing that they make us feel welcome”.
