In an unexpected maneuver on paper, the builder of the orange motorcycles made official the goodbye of Leitner , one of the cornerstones of the KTM project, which in 2022 will complete seven seasons. The loss of the former Austrian driver will be covered by Fabiano Sterlacchini , recently linked to Ducati but who had been away from Borgo Panigale for some time .
In the next few hours, the brand will announce the signing of Francesco Guidotti , which is a serious blow for the Pramac team, where he worked as team manager, and also for Ducati, with whom the Italian had a close relationship. At this point it remains to be seen who is chosen by Paolo Campinoti , owner of Pramac, to take over the role that is now vacant.
Guidotti was also one of the candidates who met with Shinichi Sahara , the head of Suzuki in MotoGP, and who continues in an endless search for a replacement for Davide Brivio , who at the end of 2020 signed for the Alpine Formula 1 team. .
Pit Beirer, director of KTM Motorsports, was full of praise for the figure of Leitner in the farewell announcement.
“Mike has been a key figure in our mission to battle the best in the racing world. Together we created a MotoGP structure with the right staff and the right riders who achieved outstanding results. We started building our RC16 and the whole plan from a blank sheet of paper and under his guidance we built a great team; one who took on the challenge of MotoGP,” he said.
“Now, after seven years together, we’ve decided to reshuffle our leadership for the future, and I can’t express how much we want to thank him for all the work he put into this project. Mike pushed hard to get us from the back of the grid to the front row and their dedication has played an important role in our success story.”
Leitner landed at the Mattighofen manufacturer in 2016 after a long stage as technical manager at Honda, always at Dani Pedrosa’s side. With the Spanish rider he won the 125cc (2003) and 250cc (2004 and 2005) titles, as well as three MotoGP world runner-up finishes (2007, 2010 and 2012).
From his time at KTM, the growth experienced by the RC16 since its official debut at the 2016 Valencia Grand Prix , with Mika Kallio as pilot, stands out.
In just five years, the Austrian prototype has already accumulated a total of five victories and 13 podium finishes.
