Suddenly, however, one-third
of the way into his 19th grand
prix season and approach-
ing what must be considered
the twilight of his career, the
Spaniard finds himself a serious
championship contender. His
first grand prix win in Argentina
is backed by three more podium
finishes, more than any other
rider in the first seven races so
far this year.
Only defending champion Fa-
bio Quartararo has more points.
And then only the four of them.
So more consistent and faster
into the bargain.
With the longest-ever Mo-
toGP season moving towards its
second half, his rivals are taking
Aleix seriously as a title contend-
er, even if he is trying not to.
He hasn't emerged from the
shadows alone. A massively im-
proved Aprilia RS-GP has carried
him, and the Noale marque has
benefited hand in hand with the
rider. At Le Mans, with a third
successive podium, the previ-
ously unobtrusive squad moved
into the lead of the teams'
championship. Underdogs to top
A
leix Espargaro is carefully
matter of fact. He's not
thinking about winning
the championship, just "enjoy-
ing the moment. It might come
only once in my career." Given
how long he has had to wait,
he doesn't want to become
over-confident about what might
prove a fleeting purple patch.
But what a moment it is, and
how very purple, for the 32-year-
old veteran of 288 grand prix
starts. Only 36-year-old Andrea
Dovizioso is older and has more
GP starts at 339.
P134
CN
III IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
Aleix Espargaro—enjoying the moment.
APRILIA–DARE TO DREAM
