Now that a salvo of big transfers has passed, eyes are turning to the ten or so drivers who do not yet have a contract for next season, with a few profiles that stand out from the crowd. Miguel Oliveira is one of them, especially since Massimo Rivola has insisted a lot on saying how much he would like the Portuguese to stay in the Aprilia group.
“Massimo told me the same thing, he told me it would be a shame to lose me,” observes Oliveira, who has been riding an Aprilia satellite for two years. If above all he would have liked to join the official team, the opportunity slipped under his nose, the brand preferring to opt for Jorge Martín, then Marco Bezzecchi.
“For very diverse factors, we did not reach an agreement earlier,” concedes the Portuguese, five times winner with KTM. “Because of last year’s results, my injuries, the start of this season which was very hard with the new bike… And then they had the opportunity to sign the championship leader and nobody can compete with that.”
“It became quite clear that for reasons that were not sporting, for other reasons perhaps, they needed an Italian driver. Massimo mentioned it right after Aleix [Espargaró] announced his retirement. It’s like that, it’s part of the business. I’m not disappointed, that’s how it is.”
“Obviously, I will do my best to take the whole project into consideration and to continue to provide the maximum effort this season despite their decision, because that is my role. We will see what happens.”
“It would be very sad to lose me,” Oliveira continues about Rivola, knowing that it is up to Trackhouse to choose its drivers, not the manufacturer. “It’s no longer in the hands of Aprilia, it will be with Trackhouse, and Davide [Brivio] talk to us both, Raul [Fernández] and me. Nothing is set so we’ll see, I hope that in the next few weeks we’ll have something more to say.”
If he is not ready to announce that he is staying in his position, it is because Miguel Oliveira wishes for the moment to remain attentive to the opportunities that may emerge on the market. He has already started discussions and assures us: “Everything remains open for me. There are probably two options that I like, so we’ll see.”
“I think every team and every rider who doesn’t have a bike yet talks to everyone. I think it’s still okay to keep several options open. We still have to wait for some decisions. I’m just listening to see if there’s something interesting, that fits my style and to see where I would be best in the near future.”
Miguel Oliveira in talks with Trackhouse Racing, but says he has other options.
Photo de: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“I think that at the moment the right approach would be to look for something similar to an official handlebar, that is to say to benefit from a factory bike with a lot of technical support, and if I can get that I will be very happy,” he specifies to the microphone of the official MotoGP website, for the attention of the brands that can still provide him with this package.
“At the moment, things are working very well at Trackhouse. We are going in a direction that I like, but it is also true that I am talking with other brands to try to understand if I could have my place in their project So it would be a matter of weeks trying to decide what I’m going to do.”
To weigh a little more in the equation that Aprilia must finalize, Oliveira recalls the risks that the brand could face if it sees all the riders who already have experience of the RS-GP leave. This will already be the case for the official team, and it is precisely to guarantee a minimum of continuity that Massimo Rivola hopes that Trackhouse will keep his duo.
“I think on one hand it matters, but on the other hand it doesn’t. To see two new guys coming in who aren’t influenced by having ridden the bike in the past is maybe a good thing, but there’s also a risk that no one will know the bike next year,” watch Oliveira.
“I think it always helps to have a rider who knows the bike. If you’re designing a better bike, for better performance, I think it’s important. But if that’s not the case, it’s also good to have two new riders.”
