"No relationship whatsoever" between teammates Alonso and Holgado
MotoGP has seen several high-profile rivalries between teammates over the years, and we now have the makings for some animosity within the Aspar Moto2 garage.
Speaking with Spanish broadcaster DAZN, CFMOTO Power Electronics Aspar rider David Alonso made clear he is not on speaking terms with teammate Dani Holgado after his role in causing the crash that ended Alonso's race at the Indonesian Grand Prix.
The flashpoint came at Turn 1 in Mandalika, where Holgado made contact with the rear of Alonso's Kalex braking into the corner and knocked him into a violent highside. Alonso's #80 bike was damaged badly enough to require repairs back in the Aspar box, which kept him from rejoining once the race was red-flagged and restarted. He also walked away with a pulmonary contusion. Holgado, who caused the incident, drew no penalty from the stewards, suffered no injury, and rejoined from his original grid slot to finish third behind Izan Guevara and Manu Gonzalez.
The result allowed Holgado to leapfrog Alonso in the standings, putting him fourth overall and just 4 points ahead of his teammate.
This was not the first collision between the two. They were weekend-to-weekend rivals in Moto3, and Holgado ran into the back of Alonso at Jerez last year. For Alonso, Mandalika was the last straw.
"Life is good, and you have to keep moving forward. When someone is not a good person, there's nothing you can do. I'm doing my thing, and he's doing his," Alonso said. "There's no relationship whatsoever, there's no chemistry in the team, and it's not a team. The incident is the least of it."
"There's much more to it than that; I'm simply carrying on my way - there's no point wasting time on people who aren't worth it."
For his part, Holgado took ownership of his role in the crash after the Mandalika race, saying: "I'd like to apologise for what happened, both to my teammate David Alonso and to the team. These things sometimes happen in the first few corners, but I'm not using that as an excuse and I take full responsibility for my mistake."
At Phillip Island, when DAZN asked him about Alonso's comments, Holgado said he'd like to clear the air, but understands how his teammate may feel "in the heat of the moment".
"It's normal; we've only been in Australia for two days and we haven't discussed the matter. I'd like to discuss it, because I've got no problem with it, and I think we're old enough to talk about these things," Holgado said. "But anyway, I'm sure we'll talk about it in the future. I'm not letting it bother me; these things happen – it's pure and simple rivalry, and that's part of the sport."
No matter what their relationship, Holgado and Alonso will only remain teammates for another few rounds. Both riders are headed to MotoGP in 2027, but on separate teams - Alonso to LCR Honda on a factory contract and Holgado to Gresini Ducati - and can continue their rivalry in the premier class.
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