When MotoAmerica racer Héctor Barberá isn’t flying past checkered flags, he’s running from his checkered past. The former Grand Prix rider has his fair share of brushes with the law. In 2013, authorities sentenced Barberá to six months in prison on a domestic violence charge against his then-girlfriend. Officials later commuted the sentence, but Barberá only had another run-in with police in 2014, when he was caught driving a Maserati without a valid driver’s license.
Four years later, in 2018, law enforcement placed the Spanish rider under arrest for driving under the influence. That same incident resulted in Barberá losing his Moto2 seat after being demoted from MotoGP the previous year. Trouble followed the disgraced racer to the Supersport World Championship, where Team Toth Yamaha accused him of stealing one of the squad’s YZF-R6 race bikes.
It seems Barberá still hasn’t shaken those kleptomaniac tendencies. Andorran authorities now believe that the two-time Grand Prix vice-champion presented a forged transfer receipt for a van valued at €13,500 (~$14,500 USD) in 2020. The local police are now investigating the crime.
All the while, number 80 absconded to the States, competing in the MotoAmerica Superbike Series with the Tytlers Cycle Racing team in 2021 and 2022. Last year, Barberá finished fifth in the standings and topped all other BMW riders. In 2023, the ex-MotoGP rider will vie for the British Superbike championship with the Honda-sponsored Tag Racing outfit.
Of course, Barberá’s BSB move indicates a step up for the seasoned veteran, but it also keeps him out of the reach of Andorran police. Still, many believe that the 36-year-old rider maintains a residence in Valencia, Spain.
We fully expect Barberá to line up at the BSB season opener at the Silverstone circuit on April 7-9, 2023. However, we have a feeling he’ll be looking over his shoulder (for all the wrong reasons) throughout the season.
