/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/RRZCRRKCHNCWPMA4X2GVM7QHWQ.jpg "Ducati signs Fermín Aldeguer, the umpteenth pearl of Spanish motorcycling | Motorcycling | Sports")
If the brand that dominates MotoGP with an iron fist notices you and wants to tie you down when the 2024 season has just begun, it means that they have detected something special. Fermín Aldeguer Mengual (La Ñora, Murcia, 18 years old) has long been pointing out ways as the next great talent in Spanish motorcycling, and from 2025 he will compete in the premier category on the back of the most reliable and rounded motorcycle on the grid in recent years . Ducati, which announced his incorporation this Monday followingnoon without specifying which team he will join, has not waited to catch the Moto2 rider and sign him for the next two seasons, with the option of signing another two later.
Aldeguer would have debuted in MotoGP this year if there had not been a clause in his contract with Boscoscuro to remain another season in the intermediate category. VR46 Racing had opted for him as a replacement for Luca Marini, who this year fills the gap left on the official Honda by Marc Márquez. “I am delighted with this agreement, because Aldeguer is one of the strongest drivers of the new generation,” comments Gigi Dall’Igna, head of the Bologna brand’s sports team. “We have been following his development over the last few years, and last season he showed incredible speed. He is a very young kid, with the characteristics and potential to do well, so we will give him all the technical support to help him grow,” adds the engineer.
Last year, Aldeguer made the definitive leap following achieving his first World Cup victory at Silverstone and closing the year with six podiums and four consecutive victories, a performance that did not go unnoticed. After debuting with a 12th position on the day of his debut in the World Championship at the age of 16, without even going through Moto3, the entry category to the competition, in 2021 the Murcian earned a place among the young talents with aspirations of achieving some MotoGP day.
The son of a mechanic, on a mini-bike already at the age of two, the young talent celebrates following the official signing the opportunity for the future that Ducati offers him. “I am very happy to be able to fulfill this dream that I have been pursuing since childhood,” explains the runner. “I want to thank Ducati, and especially Gigi Dall’Igna, for the faith they have shown in me since the beginning of our conversations,” he adds. Recaptured by former driver Héctor Faubel, now his representative, when he was left without a place at the gates of the small category of the World Championship, despite rubbing shoulders with the phenomenon Pedro Acosta and other champion drivers such as Izan Guevara during his formative years, Aldeguer strengthened his career sweeping the European Superstock 600 championship, with nine victories in ten races.
“He adapts quickly to everything, and has a very good pace, it seems like he has done 2,000 races, but he has very little experience,” Faubel praised him during his debut in Mugello, which was almost three years ago. His size and weight, 1.81 meters and 69 kilos when writing these lines, will make him one of the most unique and largest drivers in the competition upon his arrival in the premier category. Before, and with the invaluable peace of mind of having the future already resolved, he wants to take the crown of the intermediate class in what will be his third full season.
The new movement of Ducati, the first factory to make a move in the market by renewing the two-time reigning champion Pecco Bagnaia, already occupies two of the six Desmosedici available for 2025 if the transfer of Valentino Rossi’s team to the ranks of Yamaha is confirmed. With up to 18 drivers without a contract for next season, including eight-time world champion Marc Márquez, a flurry of movements from all brands is expected in the coming months. This week, the World Championship stops in Portimao for the second round of 2024, the Portuguese GP, and the hallway conversations will continue to fuel the rumors within the paddock.
