MotoGP mid-season report: ‘Championship very realistic’ - Bonora

With half of 2022’s MotoGP season done and dusted, Aprilia Racing sits second in the riders standings and top of the team title fight.

While it’s not what many in the World Championship may have expected coming in to the season, Race Manager Paolo Bonora is confident it’s where the Noale factory intends to stay, challenging across the board for the foreseeable future.

“After some difficult times, we are now so happy about the results we have achieved this year,” Bonora acknowledged. “Everybody in Aprilia Racing is very proud about the results, about the level, and the motivation of all our riders is very high.

I think, my personal opinion, it could be very realistic,” he admitted, looking ahead to Aleix Espargaro’s chances of becoming MotoGP Champion. “What is happening now is a deserved reward to all our efforts.

“I don’t want to say anything,” he continued coyly. “My way of working is to keep the feet on the ground, keep working as we have done for many years, and doing it step by step, race by race. We don’t want to think about more than this, but to keep working like we have is, for us, the correct way of managing the race. So, we will see.

Despite five weeks off after an intense four races in the same amount of time, the holiday could be limited at the Italian HQ ahead of Silverstone’s return to action in early August.

“Usually, they say that if something works, don’t touch it, but to be realistic, in such a high-level championship like MotoGP, you can’t relax, even not race by race.

“So, at the moment, we are currently working still on the chassis set-up and the electronics setting, and for sure, of course, on the engine performance,” Bonora explained. “This is to achieve the goal to give more confidence to the