The 34-year-old Spaniard made the announcement on Thursday afternoon forward of his house Catalan Grand Prix at Barcelona, the place he gained each the Saturday and Sunday races final 12 months.
Espargaro’s present Aprilia contract expires on the finish of this 12 months and he had already admitted on the signing of this deal two years in the past that he anticipated it to be his final.
Regardless of telling media on the Americas GP that he was still to decide on what he wanted to do for 2025, he has elected to name time on his racing profession.
“I’m joyful to announce my retirement as a full-time rider,” he stated. “It has been a beautiful 20 years on this paddock and I’m very joyful and happy with what we have now achieved along with Aprilia.
“We made historical past and that may by no means be forgotten. I’ve had a lot enjoyable and we have now created an unbelievable human group.
Aleix Espargaro, Aprilia Racing Staff
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“We’ve got a really good weekend forward of us, at a monitor I like and the place I’m quick, and there are nonetheless loads of races left till Valencia to be aggressive.”
Espargaro made his MotoGP debut in 2009 as a substitute rider at Pramac Ducati on the Indianapolis GP, scoring factors in his maiden race in thirteenth.
He would make 4 appearances in complete that 12 months, all of them yielding factors, earlier than signing full-time with Pramac for 2010.
Attaining a better of eighth in an injury-hit season, Espargaro returned to the intermediate class in 2011. He completed twelfth within the Moto2 standings, having scored a primary grand prix podium at Barcelona.
He returned to MotoGP in 2012 with the Aspar squad aboard an Aprilia-powered CRT machine, scoring in all however two rounds to finish the marketing campaign as high CRT rider.
Aleix Espargaro, Aspar ART, leads his team-mate Randy De Puniet
Photograph by: Kevin Wooden / Motorsport Images
He did the identical in 2013 earlier than shifting to the Ahead Racing squad on an Open class Yamaha machine – on which he scored a lucky first pole at Assen after which beat Ducati’s Cal Crutchlow in a race to the road at Aragon to complete second.
Espargaro signed a manufacturing unit deal for 2015 to hitch the fledgling Suzuki mission alongside his present Aprilia team-mate Maverick Vinales.
Instrumental within the growth of the GSX-RR that might finally win the championship with Joan Mir in 2020, Espargaro was a constant high eight challenger on the bike however by no means scaled the identical race-winning heights as Vinales.
A transfer to Aprilia’s manufacturing unit mission in 2017 adopted, with Espargaro extracting probably the most out of a motorcycle few ever considered being MotoGP-worthy throughout his first three seasons.
After a very troublesome 2019, Espargaro thought of retirement, however elected to proceed with Aprilia into 2020.
In 2021 he made historical past on the British GP when he scored Aprilia’s first MotoGP podium with a 3rd at Silverstone, following that up in 2022 together with his and the workforce’s first win in Argentina.
Aleix Espargaro, Aprilia Racing Staff
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Espargaro fought for the championship in 2022 till the latter phases, and though a title problem didn’t materialise in an inconsistent season for Aprilia in 2023 he nonetheless gained two grands prix.
Throughout his time in grand prix racing, Espargaro has additionally usually been an outspoken voice on security within the championship and pushing for needed modifications.