Despite losing his Moto2 ride after the withdrawal of a major sponsor from the ESGP team, Gino Rea is to contest selected Moto2 rounds in 2013. The young Englishman has received the go-ahead from Dorna and IRTA to enter as a wildcard at as many races as he can raise funds for in the 2013 season.
With material support from FTR, Rea will be testing and racing the 2013 version of the FTR Moto2 chassis. The team, run by Gino Rea and his father David, currently intend to race at 11 rounds of the Moto2 championship – basically, all of the European rounds. The exact number of races they will appear at will depend on the amount of money they can raise.
That is the big question for Rea. The young Londoner still needs to raise some £20,000 to contest each round. Rea has received strong support from his fan base, raising money from individual donations through the Gino Rea Club website. That effort continues, while Rea is also searching for more traditional sponsors. After the jump is a press release issued by Gino Rea, complete with contact details for potential sponsors.
Gino Rea to wildcard in Moto2 2013 World Championship under ‘Gino Rea Race Team’
In the wake of ESGP’s withdrawal from the Moto2 World Championship, Gino Rea was against the clock to find a ride for the 2013 season. With the World Superbike championship already under way and the approach of the final Moto2 test in Spain, the opportunities available to Gino were few and far between unless he could provide a six figure sum to race. Keen to replicate and further the success he enjoyed at the end of the 2012 season in Malaysia with his first Moto2 podium, Gino is not prepared to depart from the paddock just yet. With the support of his father David Rea, the pair are to run their own Moto2 team for wildcard entries in the 2013 Moto2 World Championship.
With guaranteed backing of FTR, Gino will be riding the latest 2013 FTR Moto2 bike which is currently being built according to the aerodynamic scan, tests and discussions of Gino and the FTR Factory. In addition, Gino will have the experience and expertise of distinguished world championship crew chief Andy Stone to support him.
Championship organisers Dorna and IRTA have given the go-ahead for Gino to wildcard at an unlimited number of races and now the Londoner is seeking the financial support to make his Moto2 quest possible.
Gino’s team, Gino Rea Race Team plan to enter the following eleven races in the MotoGP 2013 calendar:
05/05? Spain?, Jerez
19/05 ?France, ?Le Mans
02/06? Italy, ?Mugello
16/06? Spain, Catalunya
29/06? Netherlands?, Assen
14/07? Germany?, Sachsenring
25/08? Czech Republic, ?Brno
01/09? Great Britain?, Silverstone
15/09? Italy San Marino, ?Misano
29/09? Spain, Aragon? MotorLand
10/11? Spain, Valencia
Gino will be testing the FTR Moto2 bike at numerous UK tracks in addition to a three day test at the Jerez GP circuit prior to the race weekend.
The total cost for each round including the wildcard entry fee will be approximately £20,000. Gino is looking for sponsors to fund each race and can offer a range of sponsorship packages including per round coverage on his bike, MOTOGP paddock passes, hospitality and meet and greet experiences. It is hoped that this per race approach will be attractive to potential sponsors who could see their company logo showcased to the world as Gino competes for Moto2 glory.
The failure to source six figure sums lay behind the withdrawal of the ESGP team from the Moto2 Championship, whom Gino had agreed to ride for in 2013. In response to losing his ride, Gino appealed to all of his supporters by setting up GinoReaClub.com; an online donation page to fund his 2013 race campaign. After just three weeks, GinoReaClub.com and two individual sponsors have raised enough funds to cover one GP race. Gino hopes his project will encourage potential sponsors to get onboard and keep his Moto2 dream alive.
“I’m really excited about this project. I wanted to remain in the Moto2 Championship and running our own team was the only option. My father and I will run the team with bike support from the British FTR manufacturer. We will have the only British bike on the grid so every effort will go into getting results. Of course, it’s going to be difficult to go up against all the big budget teams but I believe we can do it. Our testing schedule will be very limited due to budget but I believe in FTR to build a competitive bike for me. Our first race will be at Jerez, the third round of the World Championship following Qatar and Austin. It’s a shame we can’t do these two but we hope that if we can attract enough sponsors we can fund the rest of the European races at least. I want to thank everyone who has supported me so far, both through GinoReaClub.com and individually. I am overwhelmed by the generosity of my supporters and I would love to repay them by being on the Moto2 grid this year.”
Source: Gino Rea
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