Yamaha's situation in MotoGP is complicated after this announcement, which looks like a second successive snub from Superbike. Thus, after approaching Toprak Razgatlioglu, Iwata's men who are looking for a successor to Viñales for 2022, and undoubtedly soon to fill the void that a retiring Valentino Rossi will leave, now see Garrett Gerloff turn his back on them. He will remain within the brand, but like the Turk, it will be in WSBK. The American has just confirmed his presence on this starting grid for one more year.
At Yamaha in MotoGP, we will not find happiness among the colleagues of the WSBK. The latter, on the other hand, are happy to see that they are ultimately not so much the poor parents in Iwata's sports program. They thought they would lose Razgatliolu and / or gerloff, and ultimately they will keep both. For the Grands Prix, you will have to look elsewhere. Dovizioso can expect a phone call whereas in Moto2, we remain attentive to the slightest movement…
But in the meantime, here is the news: Garrett Gerloff signed a one-year contract extension with Yamaha Motor Europe, which will allow him to compete in the Superbike World Championship until at least the end of 2022. The 25-year-old Texan took second place during the last WSBK meeting in Donington, which is his best finish although he finished second in a Tissot Superpole race at Estoril in 2020. In total, he has been on the WorldSBK podium five times, having left MotoAmerica at the start of the 2020 season , where he won Superbike races on Yamaha.
The Texas-born star competed in the Superbike category in MotoAmerica between 2018 and 2019 and achieved four victories, with a best third place in the standings in 2019. His move to Superbike in MotoAmerica came after two consecutive US Supersport titles, won in 2016 and 2017. His successful move to America gave him a chance on the world stage and gerloff has delivered on his promise, slowly building himself into a consistent podium contender throughout his rookie season, a campaign disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the end of the season, gerloff had been on the podium three times, acquired during his first visit to Barcelona and at the Estoril round which closed the season.
The form of gerloff continued during the 2021 campaign, when he obtained his first podium of the 2021 season during the first round at MotorLand Aragon, and although a few incidents spoiled his copy at the start of the 2021 season, gerloff has shown a strong pace so far. He also had the opportunity to be the partner of Valentino Rossi during the 2021 Dutch Grand Prix, as he replaced Franco Morbidelli hurt. Approached by Petronas to make the jump to MotoGP, he preferred to sign a new contract with Yamaha Motor Europe.
Regarding his contract extension, gerloff said : “I'm really delighted to have signed this contract with Yamaha to continue with them next year. I've had a great time in Europe over the last 18 months, and I've been very happy with the progress I've made, both in the GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team and on the Yamaha R1. We have already made progress this season, which has allowed us to regularly fight for the podium, but I know there is still a lot to do. We've been so close to that first win, within reach at Donington Park, and with the support of Yamaha and the team, I'm sure we can do it before the end of the season.not. »
With Gerloff Yamaha wants to welcome more foreign riders into its program
Yamaha Motor Europe Track Racing Manager, Andrea Dosoli, added : " I still remember Magny-Cours in 2019, when Garrett came to visit us and our journey together began. Since then, he has impressed everyone within the Yamaha family with his motivation and commitment. He achieved fantastic results, showed great speed and is able to adapt quickly to new circuits, which was confirmed at Donington Park where he was fastest overall on his first day and achieved a very impressive podium on Sunday.”
“We are very happy to be able to extend this collaboration for another season, because we believe that both parties still have a lot to learn and that Garrett can become a title contender in the near future. We gave the opportunity to a talented young rider, whom we selected from a national championship and brought him to the world stage, clearly confirming Yamaha's strong involvement in global motorsport"
Yamaha Motor Europe Marketing and Motorsport Director, Paolo Pavesio, said : " It is a great satisfaction for us to be able to confirm that Garrett will remain with Yamaha for a third season. Since joining us in 2020, Garrett has shown that he has the raw talent needed to succeed on the World Championship scene, regularly battling up front with the Championship's most prolific drivers.
» Garrett's move to WorldSBK has once again shown the opportunities Yamaha riders have to move from national championships, like MotoAmerica, to the world stage. I believe it is important for Yamaha, for WorldSBK and, in this case, for the American fans. We intend to make this step easier in the future, by welcoming more foreign Yamaha riders into our world championship program, as we have done so far with Garrett, Kohta Nozane and Galang Hendra Pratama, in order to to reconfirm the global role of WorldSBK“. So there’s not just MotoGP in life…
