The Aprilia Racing Gresini team has become the final MotoGP manufacturer to unveil the colours its bikes will sport during the 2020 season ahead of the final pre-season Qatar test.
This season will be Aprilia’s sixth since it returned to MotoGP in 2015 with a works effort in conjunction with Fausto Gresini’s satellite team.
Aprilia is due to field Aleix Espargaro and Andrea Iannone again this year, though the latter is currently suspended by MotoGP’s governing body for a doping infringement – which both Iannone and Aprilia are adamant he did not commit.
A decision on Iannone’s case was expected last week, but so far he remains in limbo and will not be riding at this week’s final pre-season test in Qatar.
Test rider Bradley Smith will be present at the test and will take over from Iannone – who is in Qatar and was involved in the livery launch – at the first race on March 8 should he be unable to compete.
Pulling the wraps off of its livery in Qatar a day before testing gets underway, Aprilia revealed a livery largely similar to what it ran last year.
Aprilia’s 2020 RS-GP has been described as a “revolution” by the marque, with the bike making an impressive on-track debut at the Sepang test a fortnight ago.
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Espargaro finished 10th overall, 0.345 seconds off the pace, and put in an encouraging 12-lap run of consistent mid-1m59s on the final day.
The Spaniard admits the RS-GP is still missing out on acceleration relative to its rivals, and reliability remains a question mark – with the latter the main focus for Aprilia in the Qatar test.
Having had just one ’20-spec bike for Espargaro and test riders Smith and Lorenzo Savadori in Sepang, Aprilia will have two current-spec bikes for Espargaro and Smith at the Qatar test.