– MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi and his VR46 team face an important decision. Fermin Aldeguer is already confirmed as a rider for the 2027 MotoGP season. Aldeguer also has a Ducati contract for the future. The Italian brand covers his salary.
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On the other hand, Fabio Di Giannantonio will leave VR46 at the end of the season and move to the KTM factory team. “Diggia” recently won his first race for Rossi’s racing team in Barcelona.
It was VR46’s first MotoGP win since September 2023. “We are all very, very satisfied with the work we have done so far with ‘Diggia’,” Rossi praises in an interview with Sky Italy.
“When we started together, ‘Diggia’ was still at the very beginning. Year by year, we managed to grow together. Now he is very strong. That fills us with great satisfaction.”
Di Giannantonio is also in the race for the world championship. After six race weekends, the 27-year-old is the highest-placed Ducati rider as third in the world championship. But for the future, Rossi has to plan without him.
Since 2022, VR46 has competed in the premier class. So far, only Italians have ridden for the team: Luca Marini, Marco Bezzecchi, Di Giannantonio, and Franco Morbidelli. With Aldeguer, a Spaniard will be part of VR46 for the first time.
These candidates are in the running
Therefore, it is important to Rossi that the second rider holds an Italian passport: “We want to have at least one Italian rider next year because our team has always grown with Italian riders.”
“We would like to continue that way. So there are various options and still some things to clarify. Nothing is official yet, we will see.” Several names are being discussed for the second VR46 seat.
A departure of Morbidelli is considered likely. Candidates for VR46 include Luca Marini, who will no longer have a place at Honda, Nicolo Bulega, who dominates the Superbike World Championship, and Celestino Vietti from Moto2.
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“We need at least one Italian rider on the team, so the mentioned names are our priorities,” says Rossi. “Then we will see how it goes. As I always say: what counts are the results.”
“Until last week, Vietti was not on the list – then he took pole in Barcelona and is now in. Whoever shows the best form in the next races will be the favorite.”
Vietti rides in Moto2 for Luca Boscoscuro’s SpeedRS team. In Barcelona, Vietti started from pole position. In the race, he had to give way to Manuel Gonzalez and finished second.
Morbidelli shone in Barcelona qualifying with second place on the grid. He could not convert the good starting position into top results in the races. He finished seventh in the sprint and tenth in the Grand Prix.
Marini achieved his best result of the season in Barcelona with sixth place. Rossi’s half-brother is the best Honda rider as eleventh in the world championship after six race weekends. However, Honda plans the future in the factory team without him.
On the other hand, Bulega continued his dominance in the Superbike World Championship. The Ducati rider also won all three races in Most. He is now unbeaten in 19 consecutive races, setting a new record.
When the series visited Most in the Czech Republic last weekend, Bulega was again asked about his future. “My manager is talking to Ducati to find the best solution for me,” said the Italian.
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“We will see. It is still too early to say anything. My goal is to find a place with Ducati in MotoGP. Ducati is working on it, my manager as well. I hope to be able to tell you something very soon.”
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