As reported by Autosport in June, Fernandez will step as much as MotoGP with KTM and Tech3 subsequent season having surprised to date in his debut season in Moto2 by profitable three races.
KTM made Fernandez’s signing official halfway via Saturday’s FP4 session on the Styrian Grand Prix, with different rider market bulletins resulting from happen subsequent week thought to have motivated the Austrian producer to maneuver now.
With Remy Gardner already locked right into a Tech3 seat for 2022, this leaves each Danilo Petrucci and 21-year-old Lecuona and not using a trip.
Lecuona was sad with how KTM introduced Fernandez’s transfer and needed to delay his media debrief following qualifying – wherein he was nineteenth – to have the scenario defined to him.
“Actually, I do not suppose it is proper the way in which they’ve introduced it,” Lecuona, who admits he knew the signing was occurring, mentioned.
“If my look with the media at present has been delayed, it is as a result of we had a gathering to clarify the scenario.
“I believe the appropriate factor to do would have been to inform Danilo and myself earlier than the beginning of the grand prix what they have been pondering of doing.
“In the long run they may have their causes, so I am not going to inform them something.”
Iker Lecuona, KTM Tech3
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
In an interview broadcast on MotoGP’s world feed after FP4, Tech3 boss Poncharal additionally expressed an unhappiness at how KTM dealt with the announcement.
“ me, I’ve all the time mentioned what I used to be feeling and pondering,” he mentioned.
“There was not an excessive amount of filter between my coronary heart and my mouth, so clearly as you possibly can think about this can be a bizarre second to announce such a giant, nice and Positive information via FP4.
“We’re right here [in Austria] for 2 weeks and we all the time determined to take out this primary half of the season and this week the plan was to lastly sit down on Sunday and determine and naturally inform our riders what’s going to be the scenario for 2022.
“However you possibly can think about, we’re again from an extended summer season break, a number of groups shouldn’t have riders and although some choices and a few signatures have already been carried out, individuals are nonetheless pushing, pushing, pushing.
“I believe it’s not the best scenario. I really feel sorry to need to do it that manner and at the moment of the weekend.”
Petrucci says he was “completely not shocked” by the announcement, including: “We anticipated it as a result of as I instructed you a lot instances, when somebody doesn’t reply the cellphone, you’re for positive not renewing the contract.
“However at the least answering the cellphone is a matter of schooling.
“As they did at present, possibly they may have waited some hours or one thing like that.
“However I’m not even shocked as a result of this world, even when I used to be right here once I was following my father once I was three years {old}, I’m all the time shocked and I believe this world will all the time shock me.
“One of the best factor is to see the faces and like you already know that I do know, however let’s say we didn’t obtain what we anticipated and I used to be the primary one in Assen to say if I used to be within the workplace of KTM administration I’d signal Raul. However then all of the interviews they made, it was fairly humorous to see they nonetheless acted like nothing was determined, however every part was determined.”