Davide Brivio has opened up on Raul Fernandez’s early struggles in MotoGP, highlighting how he would joke with the Trackhouse rider over him winning “too much” during his days in the Moto2 class.
It hasn’t been plain sailing for Raul Fernandez since joining the premier class. The Spaniard entered MotoGP with some gremlins hanging over his reputation, and Fernandez was close to falling off the grid entirely after initially disappointing at Trackhouse.
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The 25-year-old has since developed into quite an exciting talent, with his victory at last year’s Australian Grand Prix shocking the entire paddock.
Fernandez has backed it up with an impressive start to the 2026 campaign, but it’s clear he still needs to make another step forward to be classed as one of the best riders on the premier class grid.
Davide Brivio says Raul Fernandez entered MotoGP with ‘too much confidence’
In a recent interview with the Italian edition of Motorsport.com, Trackhouse boss Davide Brivio was asked about the development in Fernandez’s maturity since taking him in at the American satellite team.
While the Italian was highly complimentary, he hinted at some underlying issues that Fernandez has managed to seemingly stamp out over the last 12 months.
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“Obviously the credit goes to his talent – he’s always had great talent,” Brivio began. “It’s true, though, there were moments when he was a bit inconsistent. Last year, we had a very difficult start where we struggled to score points and finish in the top 15 in some races.
“At that point, well, it’s true, we had a rather frank chat, shall we say, about these things. Then afterwards we started setting ourselves realistic goals.”
Brivio also went on to note how he used to joke with Fernandez over his incredible efforts in Moto2. The Spaniard broke records after producing the best rookie Moto2 campaign ever, but made headlines for accusing KTM of favouring his title-winning teammate.
“I’ve even joked about this with him – I reckon he won too much in his first year in Moto2,” the Trackhouse boss continued. “As a rookie, eight wins, coming so close to the world title… perhaps that gave him a bit too much confidence, which carried over into MotoGP.
“When things started to get tough, he was a bit demoralised. So last year we started setting ourselves realistic goals: let’s start picking up points, let’s start finishing in the top ten and taking it step by step. That’s when he really came into his own.
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“His mindset changed a bit in the sense that the better his results got, the more self-confidence he gained and the more he shook off the doubts that might have crept in over those three or four years.
“Then, I’d say that the win in Australia was what really cemented this whole process – the fact that he’d started securing podium finishes and won a race in Australia like that made him much more confident.”
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