Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup

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Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
CategoryMotorcycle sport
RegionEurope
Inaugural season2007
Riders' champion
Official websitewww.redbullrookiescup.com
Motorsport current event.svg Current season

The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup is a motorcycle racing series contested by young, up-and-coming motorcycle riders, who have not had experience in a motorcycle grand prix previously. The class was founded in 2007, and since then a number of the rookies have progressed through to the 125cc/Moto3 championship in MotoGP.

Prior to the 2013 season, a 2-stroke KTM RC 125cc engine was used. The year 2013 saw a change of machinery to the 4-stroke KTM RC250RBR, following the introduction of the four-stroke Moto3 class.[1]

Fourteen ex Rookies have gone on to win a world championship as of 2021:

Rider World championship
France Johann Zarco 2015 Moto2, 2016 Moto2
United Kingdom Danny Kent 2015 Moto3
Italy Lorenzo Savadori 2015 Superstock 1000
South Africa Brad Binder 2016 Moto3
Spain Joan Mir 2017 Moto3, 2020 MotoGP
Spain Jorge Martín 2018 Moto3
France Alan Techer 2017–18 FIM Endurance World Championship
Australia Joshua Hook
Spain Raúl Fernández 2018 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior
Spain Izan Guevara 2020 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior
Italy Enea Bastianini 2020 Moto2
Spain Pedro Acosta 2021 Moto3
Turkey Toprak Razgatlıoğlu 2021 Superbike
Spain Daniel Holgado 2021 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior

So far, ten ex Rookie riders have started a race in the MotoGP class as of 2022 (active riders in bold):

Rider First race in MotoGP First win in MotoGP Race Starts Most Recent Team
France Johann Zarco Qatar Qatar 2017 No wins 85 Italy Pramac Racing
Spain Joan Mir Qatar Qatar 2019 Europe Europe 2020 50 Japan Team Suzuki Ecstar
Portugal Miguel Oliveira Qatar Qatar 2019 Styria Styria 2020 49 Austria Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
South Africa Brad Binder Spain Spain 2020 Austria Austria 2020 33 Austria Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Italy Lorenzo Savadori Europe Europe 2020 No wins 12 Italy Gresini Racing
Italy Enea Bastianini Qatar Qatar 2021 Qatar Qatar 2022 19 Italy Gresini Racing
Spain Jorge Martín Qatar Qatar 2021 Styria Styria 2021 15 Italy Pramac Racing
South Africa Darryn Binder Qatar Qatar 2022 No wins 1 Malaysia RNF MotoGP Racing
Italy Fabio Di Giannantonio Qatar Qatar 2022 No wins 1 Italy Gresini Racing
Spain Raúl Fernández Qatar Qatar 2022 No wins 1 France Tech3 Racing
  • Data correct as of March 6 2022

Scoring system[]

Points are awarded to the top fifteen finishers. A rider has to finish the race to earn points.

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th   11th   12th   13th   14th   15th 
Points 25 20 16 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
  • Each rider's lowest score discounted. (2007-08 Only)

Bike Spec[]

Rookies Cup KTM RC250RBR Technical Details[2]
Manufacturer KTM
Configuration Single-cylinder
Displacement 249.5 ccm
Combustion 4-stroke
Valve Train DOHC
Power Output min. 37 kilowatts (50 hp) at 13.000 rpm
Rev Limit 13,500 rpm
Tank Capacity ~11 liters
Frame Tubular steel with adjustable headstock and swing arm pivot
Dry Weight approx. 80.5 kg
Suspension Front Rear
WP / DM 35 mm, RCMA3548 WP / BAVP 4618, adjustable length, hydraulic preload
Rims Front Rear
OZ Forged Aluminium 2.5 x 17 OZ Forged Aluminium 3.5 x 17
Tires Front Rear
Dunlop 95/70-17 Dunlop 115/70-17
Brakes Front Rear
Brembo Radial caliper, 290 mm GALFER single floating Disc Wave® rotor Formula brake system, 190mm GALFER fixed Disc Wave® rotor

Champions[]

Season Rider Notes
2007 France Johann Zarco[3] 159 points, 57 clear of Lorenzo Savadori. Zarco went on to become the first alumni to win a world championship on any class after winning the Moto2 title in 2015 and 2016 and the first alumni to started a race in the MotoGP class.
2008 United States J. D. Beach[4] 149 points, 4 clear of Luis Salom who went on to ride in the MotoGP 125 class. Beach returned to AMA competition afterwards, while Salom would stay in Grand Prix motorcycle racing, achieving success in Moto3 with Salom earning a runner-up finish in 2012 and third-place finish in 2013, before stepping up to Moto2 and raced there until his death in 2016.
2009 Czech Republic Jakub Kornfeil[5] 132 points, 2 clear of Sturla Fagerhaug. Both went on to ride in the MotoGP 125 class. Kornfeil is currently still competing in Moto3, while Fagerhaug retired after the 2011 season.
2010 United States Jacob Gagne[6] 170 points, 6 clear of Danny Kent. Gagne has made two call-ups to World Superbike in 2017, while Kent would become the second alumni to win a world championship on any class after winning the Moto3 title in 2015. Brad Binder, the fifth place position on the standing, became the third alumni to win a world championship on any class after winning the Moto3 title in 2016
2011 Italy Lorenzo Baldassarri 208 points, 9 clear of Arthur Sissis. Baldassarri is currently competing in Moto2 with Pons HP40 Racing.
2012 Germany Florian Alt 233 points, 56 clear of Scott Deroue. Both would eventually ride in Moto3, but didn't enjoy much success.
2013 Czech Republic Karel Hanika 235 points, 72 clear of Jorge Martín. Hanika would ride in Moto3 for the next season with Ajo Motorsport, but following two crash-filled seasons, he was dropped by Ajo and switched to Mahindra in 2016, only to be fired mid-season due to poor performance.
2014 Spain Jorge Martín 254 points, 57 clear of Joan Mir. Martín is currently competing in MotoGP, while Mir become the second rider to start in MotoGP class in 2019. Mir also went on to become the fourth alumni to win a world championship on any class after winning the Moto3 title in 2017. Martin went on to become the fifth alumni to win a world championship on any class after winning the Moto3 title in 2018.
2015 Netherlands Bo Bendsneyder 243 points, 49 clear of Fabio Di Giannantonio. Bendsneyder is currently competing in Moto2 with , while Di Giannantonio is currently competing in Moto2 with Speed Up.
2016 Japan Ayumu Sasaki 250 points, 49 clear of Aleix Viu. Sasaki is currently competing in Moto3. And races for Red Bull KTM Tech3
2017 Japan Kazuki Masaki 194 points, 11 clear of Aleix Viu. Masaki currently competes in Moto3, while Viu currently competes in FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship.
2018 Turkey Can Öncü 235 points, 43 clear of Deniz Öncü. Can Öncü currently competes in the . And in 2018 , has scored his first Moto3 win at the Valencian Grand Prix ,becoming the youngest ever winner of a World Championship race. He stayed in Moto3 for 2019, but he failed to score points in the major part of the season and leaved Moto3 for 2020.For these two seasons he was riding for Red Bull KTM Ajo,while brother Deniz races in the Moto3 , and has scored 3 Podiums and 1 Pole Position to date.
2019 Spain Carlos Tatay 194 points, 32 clear of Pedro Acosta.
2020 Spain Pedro Acosta 214 points, 64 clear of David Muñoz.
2021 Colombia 248 points, 37 clear of David Muñoz.

References[]

  1. ^ http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Article/Rookies-Cup-Future-Champions-Wanted-021243238872384[dead link]
  2. ^ "The Rookies Cup Bike". Red Bull. 2015-01-01.
  3. ^ "Zarco takes win and championship!". Red Bull MotoGP Rookie Cup. Red Bull. 15 September 2007. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  4. ^ "Red Bull Rookie Standings 2008". Red Bull. 2010-09-20. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
  5. ^ "Red Bull Rookie Standings 2009". Red Bull. 2010-09-20. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 2010-09-20.
  6. ^ "Red Bull Rookie Standings 2010". Red Bull. 2010-09-20. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 2010-09-20.

External links[]

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