90’s boyband sensation Alvaro B (real name Álvaro Bautista) is set to do a one-off reunion MotoGP gig in Malaysia riding for his old label Ducati.
Alvaro, whose hits include ‘the power between my legs’ and ‘time for full wets’, was dropped by his MotoGP label Ducati in 2018 after a string of disappointing results that saw him fail to break into the top ten.
Bautista, who somehow can look 15 and 50 at the same time, then made the switch to the retirement home of World Superbikes.
For the past 18 months the Spanish heartthrob has been decimating his rivals in World Superbikes on the factory Ducati using a unique blend of skill, experience and humungous horsepower advantage. So far this season Alvaro has won 18 of the 24 races – a stat that becomes even more tedious knowing that James Toseland will have commentated on every one of them.
For all his success Ducati have awarded Alvaro B a ‘thank you’ wildcard gig in Malaysia riding their factory bike.
However the aging boyband legend will not be totally dropped into the mosh pit unprepared as last month he tested Ducati’s eyesore MotoGP bike. Although unreleased his test times were said to be impressive enough to allow Alvaro not to embarrass himself – unlike Fabio Di Giannantonio.
“I simply can’t wait to see Alvaro B perform again” gushed one female fan who is now in her 40s and should really know better. “I’ve got all his collectables! Even including the 40cm life-size cardboard cutout when he rode for Suzuki that currently the cat’s using as a scratching post.”
Didn’t the WSBK rider Toprak Razgatlwnahbsaf also test a MotoGP bike?
Yes, the Turkish late braker tested the Yamaha MotoGP bike for two days with the aim of seeing if he was fast enough to be considered to ride in MotoGP for 2024. Sadly he was no Turkish delight proving to be far too rubbish – even for Yamaha.
Although no official statement was released after the test Toprak said “I really enjoyed my test with Yamaha” (translation: I won’t be getting another one) and “I wasn’t pushing for a single fast lap” (translation: I was slow all the time).
Meanwhile Yamaha’s director Lin Jarvis claimed Toprak didn’t feel comfortable on the bike and hinted that the entire thing was a waste of time – time that could have been spent not making their bike better.