Category | Motorcycle sport |
---|---|
Region | Europe |
Inaugural season | 2007 |
Riders' champion | Álvaro Carpe |
Official website | www |
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]
The Rookies Cup staff include Rider Coaches August "Gustl" Auinger and Dani Ribalta with Peter Clifford being the Director of Rider Development and Media.
The Spaniard José Antonio Rueda was the first racer to win the Cup title and his first World Championship title in the same year (2022). The Spaniard Ángel Piqueras was the second racer to win the Cup title and his first World Championship title in the same year (2023).
Twentythree ex Rookies have gone on to win a world championship as of 2024:
So far, eleven ex Rookie riders have started a race in the MotoGP class as of 2024 (active riders in bold):
Rider | First race weekend in MotoGP | First pole position in MotoGP | First podium in MotoGP | First win in MotoGP | Race Starts | Teams |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Johann Zarco | Qatar 2017 | Netherlands 2017 | France 2017 (GP - 2nd) | Australia 2023 (GP) | 143 (GP) | Tech3 Racing (2017-18) KTM Factory Racing (2019) LCR Team (2019) Esponsorama Racing (2020) Pramac Racing (2021-2023) LCR Team (2024-) |
No podiums (S) | No wins (S) | 38 (S) | ||||
Joan Mir | Qatar 2019 | No poles | Austria 2020 (GP - 2nd) | Europe 2020 (GP) | 98 (GP) | Team Suzuki Ecstar (2019-22) Repsol Honda (2023-) |
No podiums (S) | No wins (S) | 34 (S) | ||||
Miguel Oliveira | Qatar 2019 | Portugal 2020 | Styria 2020 (GP - 1st) | Styria 2020 (GP) | 98 (GP) | Tech3 Racing (2019-20) KTM Factory Racing (2021-22) RNF MotoGP Racing (2023) Trackhouse Racing (2024-) |
No podiums (S) | No wins (S) | 30 (S) | ||||
Brad Binder | Spain 2020 | No poles | Czechia 2020 (GP - 1st) | Czechia 2020 (GP) | 90 (GP) | KTM Factory Racing (2020-) |
Argentina 2023 (S - 1st) | Argentina 2023 (S) | 37 (S) | ||||
Lorenzo Savadori | Europe 2020 | No poles | No podiums | No wins | 21 (GP) | Gresini Racing (2019-20) (Test Rider) Gresini Racing (2020-21) Aprilia Factory Racing (2022-) (Test Rider) |
4 (S) | ||||||
Enea Bastianini | Qatar 2021 | Austria 2022 | San Marino 2021 (GP - 3rd) | Qatar 2022 (GP) | 69 (GP) | Esponsorama Racing (2021) Gresini Racing (2022) Ducati Corse (2023-) |
No podiums (S) | No wins (S) | 31 (S) | ||||
Jorge Martín | Qatar 2021 | Doha 2021 | Doha 2021 (GP - 3rd) | Styria 2021 (GP) | 73 (GP) | Pramac Racing (2021-) |
Portugal 2023 (S - 2nd) | France 2023 (S) | 38 (S) | ||||
Darryn Binder | Qatar 2022 | No poles | No podiums | No wins | 20 (GP) | RNF MotoGP Racing (2022) |
0 (S) | ||||||
Fabio Di Giannantonio | Qatar 2022 | Italy 2022 | Australia 2023 (GP - 3rd) | Qatar 2023 (GP) | 57 (GP) | Gresini Racing (2022-2023) VR46 Racing Team (2024-) |
Qatar 2023 (S - 2nd) | No wins (S) | 36 (S) | ||||
Raúl Fernández | Qatar 2022 | No poles | No podiums | No wins | 58 (GP) | Tech3 Racing (2022) RNF MotoGP Racing (2023) Trackhouse Racing (2024-) |
37 (S) | ||||||
Pedro Acosta | Qatar 2024 | Japan 2024 | Portugal 2024 (GP - 3rd) | No wins | 18 (GP) | Tech3 Racing (2024) |
Spain 2024 (S - 2nd) | 19 (S) |
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 |
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 |
Description | Record | Details |
---|---|---|
Most race wins (total) | 11 wins | Ángel Piqueras (2022 - 2023) |
Most race wins in a season | 9 wins | Ángel Piqueras (2023) |
Most consecutive race wins | 6 wins | Pedro Acosta (2020) |
Most podium finishes (total) | 17 podiums | Karel Hanika (2012 - 2013) Can Öncü (2017 - 2018) |
Most podium finishes in a season | 11 podiums | Ayumu Sasaki (2016) |
Most consecutive podium finishes | 10 podiums | Can Öncü (2018) |
Most points (total) | 417 points | Jorge Martín (2013 - 2014) |
Most points in a season | 254 points | Jorge Martín (2014) |
Most pole positions (total) | 10 pole positions | Karel Hanika (2012 - 2013) |
Most pole positions in a season | 6 pole positions | Karel Hanika (2013) |
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of the twentieth century and large national events were often given the title Grand Prix. The foundation of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme as the international governing body for motorcycle sport in 1949 provided the opportunity to coordinate rules and regulations in order that selected events could count towards official World Championships. It is the oldest established motorsport world championship.
Ajo Motorsport is a Finnish Grand Prix motorcycle racing team, currently competing in the Moto2 and Moto3 classes under the name Red Bull KTM Ajo. The team's founder and principal is former racer Aki Ajo. His son, former racer Niklas Ajo, is also involved in the team as crew chief and race engineer in the Moto3 programme.
Tech3 is a motorcycle racing team competing in the MotoGP World Championship under the name Red Bull GasGas Tech3. They also compete in the Moto3 World Championship under the name Red Bull GasGas Tech3 and the MotoE World Cup under the name Tech3 E-Racing.
Miguel Ângelo Falcão de Oliveira is a Portuguese professional motorcycle racer who competes in the MotoGP World Championship for Prima Pramac Yamaha, getting the step up from KTM Tech3, a satellite team, for whom he secured both the team's, and his, first and second win.
Johann Zarco is a French Grand Prix motorcycle racer, best known for winning the 2015 and 2016 Moto2 World Championships with his 2015 triumph being a record points total for the intermediate class. He is a MotoGP race winner, and currently rides for Castrol Honda LCR in MotoGP.
Maverick Viñales Ruiz is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer who won the 2013 Moto3 World Championship. After five seasons as a MotoGP factory rider with the Yamaha Factory Racing team, his contract was terminated by mutual consent midway through the 2021 season. He joined the Aprilia Racing team from 2022 riding in the MotoGP class.
Danny Ray Kent is an English motorcycle racer, best known for winning the 2015 Moto3 World Championship. In doing so he became Great Britain's first Grand Prix solo motorcycle world champion since Barry Sheene in 1977, as well as the first British lightweight class champion since Dave Simmonds in 1969.
Brad Binder is a South African Grand Prix motorcycle racer. He is most-known for winning the 2016 Moto3 World Championship. In November 2019 he was confirmed as Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider in MotoGP class for the 2020 season, replacing Johann Zarco who had abandoned his factory ride earlier during that year.
Taylor Mackenzie is a former Grand Prix motorcycle racer based in Leicestershire, England, the son of a former motorcycle racer Niall Mackenzie, and older brother to racer Tarran Mackenzie.
Péter Sebestyén is a Hungarian motorcycle racer, competing in the 2022 Supersport World Championship for the Evan Bros. Yamaha team. He has raced in the Superbike World Championship, the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, the 2010 and 2011 125cc World Championships, the Spanish 125GP Championship, the German 125GP Championship, the European Junior Cup and the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup.
The 2012 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup season was the sixth season of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. The season began at Circuito de Jerez on 28 April and ended on 30 September at MotorLand Aragón after 15 races. The races, contested by the riders on equal KTM 125cc machinery for the last season before switching to the 250cc 4-stroke Moto3 bikes for 2013, were held at eight meetings on the Grand Prix motorcycle racing calendar.
Enea Bastianini, nicknamed "La Bestia", is an Italian Grand Prix motorcycle racer, riding for Ducati Lenovo Team in the MotoGP class. He won the 2020 Moto2 World Championship.
Jorge Martín Almoguera, nicknamed the Martinator, is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer, who will be riding for Aprilia Racing from 2025. He won the 2024 MotoGP World Championship with Prima Pramac Racing, becoming the first independent team rider to win the premier class title in the MotoGP era.
Remy Christopher Gardner is an Australian motorcycle racer, best known for winning the 2021 Moto2 World Championship with Red Bull KTM Ajo. He is the son of 1987 premier class world champion, Wayne Gardner.
Ayumu Sasaki is a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle racer currently competing in the Moto2 class for the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team. He most recently competed in Moto3 from 2016 to 2023, where he finished runner-up in his final year in the category behind eventual champion Jaume Masià.
Raúl Fernández González is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer competing in the MotoGP World Championship with Trackhouse Racing. His younger brother, Adrián, is also a motorcycle racer. They are not related to MotoGP rider Augusto Fernández. He was 2018 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Champion.
Can Alexander Öncü is a Turkish motorcycle racer. After spending the 2019 season in Moto3, for 2020 and 2021, he raced in the World Supersport with Turkish Racing Team, a new venture headed by Turkish former racer Kenan Sofuoğlu and supported by Pucetti Kawasaki and Orelac Racing, Öncü continued, making 2024 his fifth year with the same team.
Deniz Öncü is a Turkish motorcycle racer, currently competing in the Moto2 World Championship, for team Red Bull KTM Ajo. His twin brother, Can, is also a motorcycle racer. Both brothers are mentored by Turkish multi-world champion motorcycle racer, Kenan Sofuoğlu.
The KTM 125 FRR was a racing motorcycle made by KTM, which was used in the 125cc class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 2003 until 2011. The bike has been replaced by the KTM RC250GP from 2012 onwards.
Pedro Acosta Sánchez is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer, competing in MotoGP for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team. Acosta took his maiden win in only his second Moto3 race at the 2021 Doha motorcycle Grand Prix after starting from the pitlane for irresponsible riding in free practice. In the same season, he won the 2021 Moto3 World Championship becoming the first rookie champion since Loris Capirossi in 1990, and the second youngest ever champion, just one day older than Capirossi was at the time of winning. In 2023, Acosta won the Moto2 world championship with 2 races to go. Acosta is also a champion of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, having won the title in 2020.