Overview
- Tech3 said Jonas Folger will race the French Grand Prix at Le Mans in place of Maverick Viñales, who was told by Red Bull’s Athletic Performance Centre he is not yet fit after March shoulder surgery.
- With regular stand-in Pol Espargaró sidelined by a recent hand injury from motocross training, the KTM group chose Folger, who has been serving as a development rider.
- Folger last raced in MotoGP in 2023 and said returning at Le Mans will require quick adaptation after time away from race weekends.
- Viñales’s return date remains open, and some coverage suggests the Barcelona round in mid-May may also arrive too soon for him.
- The outing reunites Folger with Tech3, KTM’s French satellite team where he debuted in 2017 and claimed a home podium at Germany’s Sachsenring.