Between the 11 of them, they could have made a football team, but it is in them that Valentino Rossi trusts to continue to maintain the sacred flame and to raise the Italian drivers to the top of the charts over the coming seasons.
Their assignments for 2018 are now all decided.
Franco Morbidelli will make his debut in MotoGP at Marc VDS Estrella Galicia on a good level Honda, with a team of competent and motivated technicians. Everyone will follow his debut with interest because he is only 22 years old, and a great career in MotoGP may be ahead of him.
Francesco 'Pecco' Bagnaia will be one of the few not to change assignment, and he will remain the leading driver of the Sky Racing Team VR46 in 2018.
He will be joined by Luca marini, Valentino's half-brother, leaving from Forward.
Stefano manzi discovered that the VR46 Riders Academy is not a charity: it takes results. Manzi competed in 3 Grands Prix last year in Moto3, before being launched into the deep end in Moto2 this year, alongside Bagnaia. Manzi is currently twenty-third, with a seventh place at Silverstone to his name, and two fifteenths in Germany and Aragon. He is therefore transferred from Team Sky VR46 to the Forward Racing team, which is not a promotion.
Lorenzo Baldassarri also leaves the Forward team after three years of collaboration, to go to Sito Pons where his teammate will be Hector Barbera.
Dennis Foggia, who rode as a wild card this year in Brno and Aragon, will be part of the Sky Racing Team VR46 next year with Nicholas Bulega, currently twelfth in the World Championship.
Andrea Migno in Moto3 will be headed to Aspar due to insufficient results this year at VR46.
Niccolo Antonelli will leave Ajo Motorsport and its official KTM to join Paolo Simoncelli's SIC58 team.
Marco Bezzecchi will move from Alain Bronec's CIP team to the PrüstelGP structure, which this year is called Peugeot SaxoPrint.
Finally Celestine Vietti will be the very young hope to follow, who will complete the full season in the FIM CEV Repsol Junior World Championship within the Sky Junior team VR46.
Illustration and photos © VR46 Riders Academy
