Despite the general deconfinement, the MotoGP paddock still remains closed to journalists, and this is completely normal. But, as usual, that obviously doesn't stop him from buzzing with rumors, some of which come back to our ears...
We hide most of them, either because of a confidentiality clause, or for lack of elements allowing us to think that they are something other than rumors, but it also happens that several diffuse elements overlap and, at that moment Here we share it with you.
This was the case in our last opus with the possible merger between the Leopard Racing team and the structure which currently races Johann Zarco and Tito Rabat.
Today we can write that the discussions took place but were unsuccessful. Leopard Racing missed the boat all the more because, simple coincidence or not (probably not), in the process interest from the VR46 was shown to place Luca Marini on Tito Rabat's Ducati GP19.
This first offensive of the Doctor's structure only appears as the visible part of the iceberg. We will try to shed light on what lies beneath the surface…
The contracts linking independent teams to Dorna Sports all expire at the end of 2021. The legitimate desire of the latter is to be able to count as much as possible on solid and viable structures for the period 2022–2026, and it is almost established that Raul Romero's team will no longer be present in MotoGP in 2022.
The VR46 is in the running and could quietly wait until the end of 2021 to buy the two places in the Andorran structure. But before that, she has the problem of Luca marini to be placed in MotoGP next year, and she must therefore find an arrangement with Raul Romero and what is today called eSponsorama Racing.
What seems to be emerging today is a solution which has repercussions on the three Grand Prix categories…
- In MotoGP, Luca Marini would ride next year alongside Enea Bastianini. Who will pay ? Discussions are underway between the VR46, Sky, Monster, even Ducati, but ultimately it doesn’t matter to us…
- In a kind of exchange of good manners, the VR46 would stop the Moto3 category, from 2021, and one of its two places would go to Raul romero which could thus field two KTMs. The other place would be “lost” to limit the number of drivers to 30 on the grid. This would explain the departure of Andrea Migno for a Honda from the Rivacold Snipers Team, the other driver of the VR46, Celestino Vietti, moving to Moto2 to replace Luca Marini next to Marco Bezzecchi.
- The tripartite deal could possibly also concern two places in Moto2 for Raul Romero and, in this regard, the team American Racing appears in the crosshairs of the governing bodies, despite the recent good performances of Joe Roberts... The financial situation of the American structure does not seem to be flourishing and the latter was recently ordered to put an end to this situation, for lack of having to stop. We understand better the rumor of the probable departure of the only American driver from the only American team, for the benefit of Italtrans...
- Finally Yes Valentino Rossi promised to end his career at Yamaha, he made no commitment to his future role as MotoGP team owner. And there, his friendship with Davide Brivio and the performance of the GSX-RR point out a solution that could not be more coherent and satisfactory for Dorna Sports: the Doctor would finally align the two "Arlesian" Suzuki satellites, if indeed the Hamamatsu managers finally respond favorably to the requests of the former team manager of Valentino Rossi until the end of 2010.
These are obviously not the only elements on which this rumor is based, but If you want to check out our previous episodes of “Radio Paddock”, it’s here, and even if the truth of one day is not necessarily that of the next, we cannot say that we have been contradicted by the news… Or by the interested parties themselves who read us.