Red Bull KTM’s MotoGP test rider Dani Pedrosa will make a debut competitive appearance on the KTM RC16 as a wildcard at the upcoming Grand Prix of Styria at the Red Bull Ring.
The 35-year-old retired racing with 31 victories and 112 podium results from 13 seasons in the premier class between 2006 and 2018. Since 2019 he has been an integral part of KTM’s development program for MotoGP.
“It’s been super-interesting to be part of this project from the beginning with KTM in MotoGP and being able to share my experience with them. Step-by-step we did the best we could and now it’s interesting again to go into a race because it gives you a different perspective compared to a normal test,” said the Spaniard.
“It has been a long time since my last race and, of course, the mentality for a GP is very different to a test. My focus for the GP is to try to test the things we have on the bike in a race situation.
“I wish to understand the requests riders might have for different sessions and technical features. Watching from home I can sense the improvements in the bikes and the racing but in order to understand more about MotoGP now, the new technologies and how to race and use strategies against the others we’ll make this wildcard.
“It’s difficult to talk about my expectations after being so long away from competition. It might all click into a racing mentality or it might not but we’ll try to enjoy the weekend as much as we can.”