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By Finnegan Driscoll| Posted August 1, 2022 | In MotoGP, MotoGP
Spanish riders have dominated MotoGP in recent years. This route to global dominance was carved out by Alex Criville- who, in 1992 became the first Spaniard to win a 500cc grand prix. Then, in 1999 Criville cemented his place in Spanish history as he became the first Spanish rider being crowned world champion in the premier class. Just as significantly, this broke up the dominance of American and Australian riders and paved a way for Criville’s aspiring compatriots. Fast forward two decades and ten of the last twelve MotoGP champions have been Spanish. Some question how a country already captivated by popular sports such as basketball and football can at the same time produce such a plethora of talented MotoGP riders.
The simple answer lies in the smart investment made by the Spanish government and some big companies like Repsol and Telefonica Movistar. However, it is important to emphasise how big a role owners and commercial/TV rights holders, Dorna have played in the rise of MotoGP in Spain. Dorna have owned these rights since 1991 and have since then made it their mission to reinvest in the sport. Seeing as they are a Spanish company, this has benefitted Spain the most. Backed by the aforementioned Repsol and Telefonica Movistar, Dorna have helped set up various programmes to help discover and nurture talented young riders in Spain.
This investment has helped to increase access to motorcycle racing, and in turn made it more popular in the country. The dominance we see today was bound to happen as this investment at the root of the sport was unparalleled with the rest of the world. MotoGP’s rise in popularity, and in turn the success of its riders, in Spain can be attributed to how money was spent, not necessarily how much of it was invested.
Still competing in MotoGP, and being just 26, Alex Rins will be hoping to add to his already impressive stats. He has 3 wins and 15 podiums from 90 races. The Team Suzuki driver joined the team in 2017 after making a good name for himself in the Moto2 and Moto3 world championships. Rins’ time in the premier class has been respectable so far, finishing in 3rd in the 2020 championship however one cannot help but think he could go on to put together a good MotoGP career.
Joan Mir, at the end of 24, is the youngest racer on this list and whilst his 1 Grand Prix win is lower than other Spanish riders on the list, there is a factor that illuminates the Majorcan- his championship title. Mir battled with Fabio Quartararo and fellow Spaniard Maverick Vinales to win the 2020 MotoGP title. In doing becoming one of only 4 Spanish riders to win the championship and also the first Suzuki rider to win the championship since 2000. Whilst Mir is not yet a seasoned rider, his success at such a young age leaves fans excited to see how his career in MotoGP pans out.
Born in Barcelona, Carlos Checa competed in the MotoGP for over a decade, and he holds 2 grand prix wins whilst also finishing on the podium an impressive 24 times. Checa enjoyed his most successful season in 1998 racing for Movistar Honda Pons, narrowly missing out on a top 3 finish as he ended the year in 4th place. This feat is made more impressive when you consider the fact Checa was involved in a near fatal collision at Donnington Park grand prix in that season. After a long career in MotoGP, Checa made a successful switch to the Superbike World Championship in 2008.
Aleix Espargaro is currently competing in his 13th season in the MotoGP and is only getting better with age. He is enjoying a late peak in his career and having raced on some less powerful bikes in his early years in MotoGP he now has a chance with Aprilla Racing to climb the rankings. He has enjoyed a solid career, holding 1 grand prix win, and finishing on the podium 7 times. However, the Catalan’s story is not finished and with him currently sitting in 2nd place in the overall standings for the 2022 championship he will be hoping he can overcome Quartararo and become only the 5th Spaniard to lift the MotoGP title.
Born in Girona, Viñales grew up competing in motorcycle competitions in Catalonia. He began his MotoGP career in 2014, racing for Suzuki, and in 2015 he won the ‘rookie of the year’ award following a 12th place finish. He carried this good form into the following season, and he finished 4th overall. Despite not having won a championship, Viñales is enjoying a successful MotoGP career and he has recorded 9 wins and 29 podium finishes from 131 races. Following a turbulent end to his time racing for Yamaha, Viñales is currently a rider for the Aprilla Racing team.
Despite an unsuccessful return to MotoGP in 2009, Sete Gibernau enjoyed a good MotoGP career. He is best remembered for pushing his Yamaha team mate Valentino Rossi to the limit in 2003 and 2004, with the pair battling for the championship title. Gibernau fell short, finishing 2nd in the overall rankings for both of those seasons. However, his valiant attempt to end the Italian’s dominance was applauded and Gibernau performed very well in many of his duels with Rossi- winning 8 Grand Prix’s during this period.
Pedrosa is remembered by many as ‘the greatest to never win a championship,’ and this is clear once you take a look at some his career statistics. His 31 wins put him joint 8th in the all-time list for career wins- for context, he is tied with Eddie Lawson, a 4 time champion. Nonetheless, Pedrosa is adored by racing fans, and following his retirement in 2018 he was inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame. He joined an illustrious list of only 28 riders and in turn underlined the fact that despite having not won a championship, he is a legend of the sport.
Alex Criville was the trailblazer for Spanish riders in MotoGP, as he was the first from the country to win a MotoGP race in 1992 and the first to win a championship in 1999. His unfortunate retirement in 2002 due to a health issue has left some to wonder whether he could have potentially achieved more had he of been able to continue racing. However, his championship win in 1999 will forever be an important event in MotoGP history- it marked the beginning of the new wave of Spanish talent. Despite his career being cut short, Criville enjoyed a successful career in MotoGP. He raced 131 times, winning 15 races, and he finished on the podium 51 times.
A 3-time motoGP championship winner, Lorenzo burst onto the scene finishing in 4th place in his debut year racing for Yamaha. In the season after that he pushed Yamaha team mate, and MotoGP legend, Valentino Rossi to the limit as he finished 2nd to the Italian. Finally, Lorenzo won his first championship in 2010 and in doing so became only the 2nd Spaniard to do so, after Alex Criville. Going on to win 2 more championships in 2012 and 2013 respectively, Lorenzo has earned his place in MotoGP and certainly Spanish MotoGP history. His 3 championships are complimented by 47 wins and 114 podiums from 203 races- underlining Jorge Lorenzo’s legendary status.
To no surprise, the 6 time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez tops this list. Nicknamed ‘the ant,’ he has cemented his place as one of the greatest MotoGP riders of all time and the most successful from a plethora of Spanish talent. His 6 championships are accompanied by 59 wins and 99 podium finishes from 148 races.
Marquez was destined for stardom after a successful time in Moto2 and in 2013 he was picked up by Repsol Honda. He became the youngest ever MotoGP champion in his debut season, and his promise did not stop there as he matched this feat in the following season- winning another championship. After a blip in 2015 he returned to winning ways as he won the next 4 MotoGP titles. Marquez’ dominance has seen him become a true legend of the sport, with only Giacomo Agostini and Valentino Rossi holding more premier class championships than him.
Are you ready to explore the transformative power of athlete sponsorship for your brand? Click here to learn more about how sponsorship can help brands grow and thrive in the exciting world of motorsports.
The online platform where you can discover the latest trends, strategies and insights from the exciting world of sports marketing.
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By doing so, we are convinced that we are shortening the value chain, saving time and money. However, these DYI methods are anything but risk-free and what initially appears to be a competitive advantage soon turns into a problem that is difficult to resolve. That’s why there are agencies. And this is why you should rely on us for your sponsorships.
When first approaching a sponsorship or sports marketing project, it is difficult to know immediately which stakeholders are correct, what the decision flow is, and what the right timelines are for each process. Sports is a very specialized field of action, and fitting effectively into its paths can take a lot of time and therefore money. We, on the other hand, know referents and spheres of action and know who to talk to, when and how. So you are also more effective.
Sports is an immense passion, and for our heart colors we would be willing to do anything. But business is a different business, and it is important to make the best possible strategic decisions based on independent research, statistics and reliable data. A sports marketing and sports sponsorship agency like RTR has an objective, 360-degree picture of the scenario and can tell you what is really best for you: which sport, which athlete, which team. This is because we possess a great deal of data and information on ratings, segmentation and attitudes. Because the numbers don’t lie. Never.
Activations are the real heart of sports sponsorship. Without them, there remains only a blank sticker on a motorcycle, car or uniform and no contact with the public, no emotional connection, no impact on the bottom line. Then how do you do it? It certainly won’t be the teams or the athletes who will help you leverage sponsorship and enjoy the many marketing rights you have paid for. To bring out the best in a sports marketing project you need an agency that knows how to use sponsorship to engage the fanbase on the Web, to reach out to Shopping Centers, to organize hospitality, to develop B2B and B2C opportunities, and to get “your” athletes in front of millions of potential consumers.
Would you ever go to the dealer who sold you the car and ask if the competitor’s car is better? No, of course. So, how do you expect to get firm measurements of the effectiveness of your sponsorship if you do not rely on someone super partes? At RTR, we have always worked with independent third-party agencies that allow us to know the return on any exposure of your brand on TV and in the media. In addition, we believe in calculating ROI as the ultimate measure of your success-so we can tell you for every penny you spend how much you are making.
We have been involved in sports sponsorship and sports marketing for more than 15 years. We are consultants in the sense that our goal is to maximize your investment, but we are also an agency that manages the project from start to finish. We have been doing this since 1995 with passion and professionalism, following three principles that have become cornerstones of our business: independence, verticality and transparency.
I would like to highlight the fact that one of the qualities of RTR is its great ability to approach the sponsorship scenario strategically, together with its passionate attitude, its amazing enthusiasm for solving problems, and its high level of professionalism.
Gianluca Degliesposti
Executive Director Server&Storage EMEA
Eurosport is truly delighted with its business relationship with Riccardo Tafà, who has become extremely popular, thanks to his detailed knowledge of the sports marketing sector and his highly diligent attitude to work.
Francois Ribeiro
Commercial Director
Passion and Expertise are the features that I have found in RTR since the very beginning. Serious and reliable professionals but also very helpful, nice and open-mind people, willing to listen and compare different ideas. All the values in which RTR believes make this agency a partner, not just a supplier, a partner with whom we have had the opportunity to achieve significant commercial results in term of success and image.
Luca Pacitto
Head of Communication
We have been working with RTR Sports Marketing for over 10 years. The objectives and the programmes of collaboration continue to be renewed and to grow with mutual satisfaction. I believe RTR is a team of great professionals led by Riccardo Tafà, who I consider a manager of exceptional skills and with a great passion for his work.
Lucio Cecchinello
Team Principal
I have known and worked with Riccardo Tafà since 1995 when we collaborated for the first time on a project for the Williams Formula 1 team. Several clients followed. After leaving Williams to work for Gerhard Berger then owner of the Toro Rosso F1 Team, I turned again to Riccardo to seek his help in finding a tool supplier for the team and Riccardo duly obliged with an introduction to USAG, a partnership with Toro Rosso which endured for five years. I recently started a new role as Group Commercial Director for the renowned Andretti Autosport organisation and I find myself working with Riccardo once again on a number of interesting projects. Why has this relationship with Riccardo endured ? He’s smart, knows the commercial side of sport inside out and back to front and he’s honest and trustworthy. Riccardo Tafà is a “doer” not a “talker”: in over 20 years I have never had a dispute either with him or with a company that he has introduced and each partnership introduced by Riccardo has delivered quantifiable ROI to rights holder and sponsor alike. I can think of no better testimonial of Riccardo’s diligence, knowledge, contact base and hard work than that.
Jim Wright
Group Commercial Director
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