Savadori, Bradl join Pedrosa for Jerez MotoGP wild-cards

MotoGP grid numbers will be boosted by the attendance of three wild-card riders at Jerez this weekend.

Headlining the trio will be home star Dani Pedrosa, whose Jerez race appearance was officially announced by KTM during the previous COTA event.

Pedrosa delighted the Spanish fans by leading opening practice last season, qualifying on the second row and finishing sixth (Sprint) and seventh (Grand Prix) in the races.

The Spaniard's last wild-card appearance, at Misano, also saw the debut of a carbon fibre chassis, which Pedrosa took to the brink of the podium in both races. Might KTM unveil a similar surprise this weekend?

Meanwhile, Aprilia and Honda have confirmed to Crash.net that their respective test riders, Lorenzo Savadori and Stefan Bradl, will also compete at Jerez, raising grid numbers to 25.

Jerez is a popular event for wild-card entries since factory test riders are already familiar with the circuit from private testing and - having taken part in the grand prix weekend - are already up to speed for the following Official test on Monday.

MotoGP rules allow a maximum of three wild-cards at each Grand Prix round.

Ducati is the only factory currently unable to field wild-cards due to it’s ‘A’ ranking in the new concessions format.

Yamaha is yet to reveal when its test rider, Cal Crutchlow, will take part as a wild-card. The Englishman last raced in MotoGP at Motegi in 2023.