News Summary

Franco Morbidelli’s future is officially settled. Ducati announced on Monday that the Italian will leave MotoGP at the end of the 2026 season and move to the World Superbike Championship in 2027, taking over Nicolò Bulega’s factory Panigale V4 R at Aruba.it Racing–Ducati.

Morbidelli will partner Iker Lecuona, effectively completing a seat swap between MotoGP and WorldSBK. Bulega, who has just secured the Superbike world title, is leaving Ducati’s factory team to join VR46 in MotoGP, while Morbidelli heads in the opposite direction after two seasons with Valentino Rossi’s squad.

The announcement confirms the destination that had been expected since VR46 confirmed Morbidelli would leave the team at the end of 2026.

“I am very happy and excited about this new chapter in my career. I thank Ducati and Aruba for this opportunity,” Morbidelli said.

“As always, I will do my best to live up to a team that has fought at the top for years and has just won the Superbike World Championship. I will do the best job possible to achieve great results together,” he added.

The switch brings Morbidelli’s nine-year stay in MotoGP to an end but keeps the 31-year-old within the Ducati structure. After leaving Yamaha at the end of 2023, the Italian joined Pramac for the 2024 season before moving to VR46 in 2025, racing a Desmosedici GP in both cases.

Morbidelli’s connection with the Superbike paddock, however, goes back much further. A product of the VR46 Riders Academy, he won the European Superstock 600 championship in 2013 before moving directly into Moto2, bypassing Moto3.

He became Moto2 world champion in 2017 after a dominant campaign and stepped up to MotoGP with Marc VDS Honda the following season. Morbidelli then moved to Petronas Yamaha in 2019 and enjoyed the strongest campaign of his premier-class career in 2020, winning three races and finishing runner-up to Joan Mir.

Across 14 seasons in the Grand Prix paddock, encompassing Moto2 and MotoGP, Morbidelli has started 228 races, recording 11 victories, 29 podiums and eight pole positions.

His move to WorldSBK therefore represents a significant addition to a championship that will undergo major changes in 2027. One of the most important is the switch to Michelin tyres, something Ducati believes could make Morbidelli’s extensive MotoGP experience particularly valuable from the beginning of his Superbike programme.

Aruba.it Racing–Ducati team principal Stefano Cecconi highlighted that factor when explaining why the Italian was chosen to succeed Bulega.

“We welcome Franco with great enthusiasm, certain that he will be able to give us much satisfaction,” Cecconi said.

“The 2027 season will bring several new developments and will be an important challenge for both the rider and the team, but setting ambitious goals is part of our DNA.”

Cecconi stressed that Morbidelli’s years working with MotoGP machinery — and particularly with Michelin tyres — could help Ducati adapt quickly to WorldSBK’s new technical landscape.

“Franco brings with him highly valuable experience, gained over many years in MotoGP with top teams: an important factor also in view of the arrival of the new tyres, which he knows very well and on which he will be able to provide us with precious feedback,” he continued.

“Furthermore, although he is changing category, he will remain on a Ducati, which will guarantee continuity in his working method and technical approach. We can’t wait to begin this new adventure and to share work and ambitions with Franco.”

Franco Morbidelli (Photo: VR46)

Ducati Corse general manager Gigi Dall’Igna also pointed to Morbidelli’s technical sensitivity and familiarity with the Italian manufacturer as important reasons behind the signing.

“We are very happy to welcome Franco to the Aruba.it Racing–Ducati family,” Dall’Igna said.

“Franco is a very talented rider who, throughout his career, has shown speed, technical sensitivity and the ability to adapt at the highest levels of world motorcycle racing. After many years spent in MotoGP, he will bring to our Superbike project an extremely valuable wealth of experience.”

Dall’Igna believes Morbidelli’s two previous seasons riding Ducati machinery will also shorten the adaptation process despite the considerable differences between a MotoGP prototype and the production-based Panigale V4 R.

“We are convinced his move will also be supported by his deep knowledge of the Ducati environment and our working methods, an aspect we consider particularly important given the new technical challenges awaiting us in 2027,” he said.

“Together with Aruba.it Racing, we have built a winning project over the years, and we believe Franco has all the qualities to help keep it at the top. We can’t wait to start this new journey together.”

The move also completes an unusual exchange between two of Ducati’s most prominent programmes. Bulega leaves WorldSBK after winning the 2026 title and moves into the VR46 seat vacated by Morbidelli, while Morbidelli inherits the factory Superbike that the newly crowned champion leaves behind.

For Morbidelli, the move offers an opportunity to fight at the front again after several difficult MotoGP seasons. His three premier-class victories all came during his breakthrough 2020 campaign, when he emerged as Yamaha’s strongest championship contender and finished only 13 points behind Mir.

The Italian’s trajectory changed considerably afterwards. A knee injury disrupted his 2021 season before he moved into Yamaha’s factory squad, but he struggled to reproduce his Petronas form. The subsequent switch to Ducati machinery provided a route back towards the front, although he never became a regular victory contender.

His MotoGP chapter will now close at the end of the current campaign, while the WorldSBK move takes Morbidelli back to the paddock in which his international career began more than a decade ago.

GRANDE PRÊMIO provides full coverage of MotoGP and WorldSBK throughout the 2026 season.

MotoGP today: FAQ

Who won the Japanese MotoGP race today?

Marc Márquez won the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, finishing 1.363s ahead of Jorge Martín. Marco Bezzecchi completed the podium, while Márquez secured a weekend double after also winning Saturday’s Sprint.

Who leads the MotoGP championship after the Japanese GP?

Jorge Martín remains the MotoGP championship leader with 333 points, just 2 ahead of Marc Márquez on 331. Márquez’s two victories in Japan reduced the gap from 12 points at the start of the weekend.

When is the next MotoGP race?

The next MotoGP race is the Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika on Sunday, 11 October 2026. The weekend runs from 9–11 October.