Born in Barcelonalives in Vilanová i la Geltrú and visited Argentina twice, but Creole customs are surrounded Valentine Perrone. He turns 18 on December 28th and his love affair with motorcycles began a decade and a half ago. In 2026 he will complete his second calendar with the team Red Bull KTM Tech3which was bought last September by an investment group led by Günther Steiner, the Italian who led the Haas Formula 1 team between 2016 and 2024. “Nobody knows why I became a biker: my father likes cars and Nobody in my family dared to take part in motorcycling competitions.“says the one who stuck to it, under the Argentine flagthe challenge of landing at the finish Top ten the championship of his season beginner.
Mate, asado, empanadas, watching Pro League football – he is a River fan and was at the Monumental for the win over Atlético Tucumán in the Apertura tournament – before a Spanish league game are traditions that remain in the Perrone family, who settled in Spain, although Marcelo’s first destination – an electromechanical worker who left Argentina during the 2001 crisis – was Germany. There he met Ruth, with whom he had two children: Valentin and Inés.
In March of this year, the young pilot landed in the country he represents for the first time: The reason was the Grand Prix of the Argentine Republic, which said goodbye to the headquarters of Termas de Río Hondo. In the first days of December he returned and settled in Buenos Aires, although the stay was short-lived: the return to Spain and a new flight to the United States to train at a campus in California were among the activities he carried out before spending the holidays with his family. “The racing calendar is over, but the year is still busy and 2026 will start in the same way: we will travel to Malaysia in January to continue with the pre-season, which will end in Austria, where we will train at a Red Bull site,” explains Perrone THE NATION at a lecture in downtown Buenos Aires.
“I think it was a very positive seasonwith very good moments and other complicated ones, but learn a lot. It was difficult for me in the first few races; I fell on the first three. This was a complicated point. We improved on training on the motorcycle because it was something new, completely different from what I was used to. After the summer break in Austria, I felt the change: it was a flow, dancing with the bike, everything came naturally to me, almost without having to think about it… It was as if I had discovered all the secrets of the bike. We started fighting for podium places and in Hungary I was 18 thousandths away from winning! “A week before I took pole in Austria,” he emphasizes, before the excitement of the words fades away, as it did with them Spectacular fall in Indonesia after an accident with Luca Lunetta in the Sprint race. The Spanish-Argentinian was unconscious and that was it hospitalized; For precautionary reasons, he was not allowed to take part in the main prize.
“That made me lose confidence because that was it stock The biggest film I’ve acted in. A big fall. It was difficult to returnI would say a lot. At the race in Australia, I couldn’t ride comfortably because of the tension I had during two laps and because of my neck pain. It was only at the last two dates, in Portugal and in Valencia, that we were able to regain our self-confidence, become quick again, and although the result of a win was not achieved, we achieved the goal of finishing in the season Top 10 in the championship”, analyzes the least happy moments of the course.
He also had an accident in Argentina on the last lap while fighting for points. The balance? A Ankle sprain left, pain masked by the fans’ support. “The support I had was incredible, not just on the track. Out of nowhere, I added eight thousand followers on Instagram and the messages accompany me at all races,” he emphasizes.
The incidents, the falls teach how motorcyclists’ minds work. “First you run along the motorcycle to get back on; Then analyze your physical condition. When I woke up in Indonesia after losing consciousness, The first thing I asked at the hospital was if I could walk the next dayif I could get on the bike again. And his face was full of scars. Anyway, I needed the psychologist’s supportwhich helped me regain self-confidence. The nervous system recognizes that you are not afraid, but then the body does not react to the motorcycle“, explains with a smile, whose only serious injury is a broken right thumb.
The Security It is a matter in which MotoGP and the International Motorcycle Federation (FIM) are constantly making progress. “Every three or four races there are rider meetings with the FIM people and they explain to us if there are new regulations, if we have doubts about something that is being implemented or what is going on, but that was not clear to some riders. Those of us in Moto3 do not participate as much, but we are represented by those in MotoGP who ensure everyone’s safety. The evolution of the elements is fantastic: The suits have Kevlar reinforcements and protectors on the elbows, shoulders and knees. Airbags that use sensors to detect a fall and inflate in milliseconds, protecting the neck, chest and back. Helmets are designed to absorb shock and boots have also evolved, with protection mechanisms and shells for the ankle and heel; They are also heat resistant. The gloves are the same,” emphasizes Perrone.
The Moto3 Championship offers great shows with several favorites to win. On the track there are fights between several drivers and with the slightest mistake you lose a lot of positions that are difficult to make up. “You have to try to be perfect on the bike and also on the bike. Because in a category as competitive as Moto3 30 pilots at a very similar level and in which one The difference between the first and the last is sometimes a secondall the details count: food, rest, training with intensity… You lost concentration, made a mistake and fell back to 20th place. “The little thing can make or break the weekend,” analyzes the person who spoke briefly with Steiner: “I don’t know what function it has. I work with my technician, my telemetry, my mechanics and from then on I don’t know anything else. I don’t interfere in what’s happening outside.
The purchase of the team was carried out by around 20 million euros and was made possible by Apex, a fund that manages the capital of several high-profile athletes, including the youngest Formula 1 world champion, Lando Norris. “It’s not a cheap sport and for the beginning it’s ideal to have friends who can give you the first motorcycle. But later the costs become higher every time you move up in the category,” explains, who started with Minimoto, climbed to 110 cc and then to 140 cc before reaching it Moto4 in the Spanish championshipa category for the Budget of around $100,000. Perrone didn’t have that money and took part in the Pre Moto3 and later the European Talent Cup. The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, where he was selected from among 150 children, gave him the boost he needed: two wins – in Mugello and Misano – and six podiums took him to third place in the competition.
“My first support came from my father. I also worked with Chico Lorenzo, Jorge’s father (five-time world champion). We drove with what we could in a van that was many years old and had miles on it. After 12 hours of driving, we didn’t even know how to get to each route. Our vacation was on the weekend: travel and hit the race track so that I can take part in competitions. It was an adventure, like going camping. They are moments that I remember with great joy because they were the beginning of why I am now in Moto3. “The beginning of the dream,” he remembers with a smile, as the dream of MotoGP takes its course.
The dramatic definition in Hungary
“In 2026 we have to Be competitive and try to win the titlebecause if we are ahead, it will be possible to make the jump to Moto2. It’s an important difference: motorcycles have much more power and more weight. The handling is different and once you arrive, To reach MotoGP you have two or three years at most. You have to be very lucky to stay in Moto2 for several years. In addition, the new shifts are pushing and the teams are choosing to give them opportunities Newbies. Being in MotoGP is every rider’s dream, but the best thing is to enjoy the journey. I know you can get there if you do things well, but you should always keep your eye on the now and the moment,” he explains. “Coyote” (nickname given to him by his father), which refers to the last monarch, Marc Marquez.
The number 73 on the motorcycle is not strange. This is a reference to Marcelo, who was born in 1973. He is the man who worked more than 12 hours so that Valentín could keep up and who now owns his Coyote also pays tribute to him by representing him with the Argentine flag.
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