– The departure of Davide Brivio at the end of the season has prompted Trackhouse and team owner Justin Marks to initiate a restructuring process. This includes changes in the driver lineup, the appointment of Francesco Guidotti as team principal, and the consolidation of title sponsorship.
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The news of Brivio’s decision was announced during the French Grand Prix. Sources within the American team reported that rumors of the Italian’s connection to Honda surfaced only a few hours after he informed Marks of his intention to leave the team.
The gap left by Brivio will be enormous and difficult to fill. His new role at Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) is reportedly closer to the business side than the actual racing operations.
Few people in the paddock have comparable depth of experience. Brivio has been involved in MotoGP for nearly three decades and held key positions at Yamaha and Suzuki before briefly moving to Formula 1 with Alpine in 2021, where he served as racing director. In 2024, he returned with the task of building and further developing Trackhouse’s long-term project.
Francesco Guidotti as Brivio’s Successor
Under Brivio’s leadership, the American team achieved its first MotoGP victory in Australia in 2025 and collected a total of four podium finishes. Additionally, Trackhouse established itself as one of the strongest teams in the championship.
It benefited from Aprilia’s recent progress. A strong start to the season has placed it second in the team standings, just behind Aprilia’s factory team.
Brivio enjoys an excellent reputation in the paddock for his ability to give organizations structure and find creative solutions to complex challenges. That is precisely why he is particularly hard to replace.
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After talks with several candidates, Trackhouse appears close to signing former KTM team manager Francesco Guidotti as Brivio’s successor. According to Motorsport.com, a partner site of Motorsport-Total.com, both sides are interested in finalizing the agreement as soon as possible, although no contracts have been signed yet.
It would not be surprising if Guidotti took over his duties before the end of the current season. Given Brivio’s impending move to Honda and the introduction of the new technical MotoGP regulations starting in 2027, his current position is becoming increasingly delicate.
The reason is his access to confidential information about Aprilia’s future motorcycles. It would therefore be logical for Trackhouse to terminate Brivio’s contract once the agreement with his successor is finalized.
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Besides searching for a new team principal, Brivio’s departure also forces Justin Marks to reassess the driver market to set the lineup for 2027.
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Ai Ogura’s move to Yamaha automatically creates a vacancy in the Trackhouse garage. This is expected to be filled by Enea Bastianini, provided KTM keeps its promise to release the Italian. The contract between the two parties originally covered the 2025 and 2026 seasons and includes an option for 2027, which only KTM can exercise.
According to Motorsport.com, Bastianini’s expected move is partly due to Aprilia’s desire. The brand had already considered him as a possible replacement for Jorge Martin before the signing of Francesco Bagnaia came into play.
If KTM does release Bastianini, the focus will shift to who will be his teammate. Several factors will influence this decision, and not all of them are sporting. If performance alone were decisive, Raul Fernandez would likely have been extended long ago.
The Spaniard gave Trackhouse its first MotoGP victory in team history and collected more top-3 finishes than any other team rider with three podiums.
He might even have added another podium last Sunday in Mugello if he had not misjudged the first braking zone. This mistake dropped him from second to second-to-last place before he fought back to eighth. Fernandez had won the sprint on Saturday.
Despite these performances, the Spaniard has not yet received a contract offer from Trackhouse—a situation that creates little confidence in his future with the team.
This uncertainty has led to speculation that the shoulder surgery Fernandez has postponed since his injury in Portugal last year might play a role in recent talks Marks has had with Manuel Gonzalez.
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The team’s upward trend has not gone unnoticed by commercial partners. The most important of these is SuperFile, which joined Trackhouse as title sponsor at the Austin race after already having a successful collaboration in the brand’s NASCAR program. The company first appeared with Trackhouse at the Daytona 500 and later celebrated a win with the team at Watkins Glen.
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SuperFile CEO Shane Valdez subsequently attended the MotoGP race in Jerez and was reportedly impressed both by the events on the track and the championship’s growth potential. The collaboration with Trackhouse is therefore planned to be expanded and established long-term.
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