Jorge Viegas, president of the FIM, opened his re-election at the head of the organization with a “bomb” that came in the form of news on the microphones of RAI: “In 2024 Valentino’s team will leave Ducati and race with Yamaha”. The Portuguese made it clear that it was not yet official, but also his intentions for a season where the VR46 still had a valid contract with the Italian factory to continue competing with the Desmosedici. When the structure settled in MotoGP in 2022, he signed a contract that linked him to the Bologna factory for the next three courses, but it seems that Dorna’s plans are different due to the excessive number of Italian motorcycles on the grid.
Despite the fact that Valentino currently owns the rights to the two seats occupied by the VR46 in the premier classthe real owner is the promoter of the championship and that means that it is in your hands to decide which factory each place is destined for. The 8 Ducati are taking their toll on the World Cup and even though Uccio Salucci, team manager, does not know “why Viegas dropped such a bombshell, because we know nothing about it and we have a three-year contract with Ducati that ends at the end of 2024, with the option of renewing it for two more seasons”, as he acknowledged in GPone, They will have to respect a decision that is fully focused on the news released by the FIM president.
For Rossi’s inseparable “It is the never-ending story. Before they said that we would have the Yamaha in 2023, now that it has been postponed to 2024…”, and strange as it may seem, it may now end much sooner than they thought. Lin Jarvis, head of Yamaha, recognized in motorsport that the objective is “to have four Yamaha on track in 2024″. The British did not give names, but he did assure that they are already in “conversations” to carry out the plan. The position is consistent with Viegas’ statements and despite the fact that this means not complying with an agreement against which Uccio is firm and assures that they will “respect”, the decision is not in his hands.
Despite the fact that the Yamaha is nowhere near as competitive as it was during Rossi’s hegemony in the premier class, Ducati inequality needs to be corrected as soon as possible for the good of the championship and until the moment in which Viegas released the news, the objective was to do it with the maximum possible discretion. What the FIM president announced for Uccio it is nothing more than “a rumour”, in which “if there is something true, it is better that they communicate it to us as well”. The reason? for the VR46 “The important thing is to have competitive motorcycles”, the relationship with Ducati is good, “the bikes are fast and both Marini and Bezzecchi are very happy”. This means that their intention is to continue with the Bologna factory but, this time, they will only have to abide by a decision that seems to be almost made…