Ducati's Musical MotoGP Chairs
D
ucati is set to shuffle its pack
of riders for 2024, with Marco
Bezzecchi likely to move up from
VR46 to Pramac next season.
The Italian manufacturer will con-
tinue supplying just four factory
bikes in '24, with the factory team
and Pramac having two apiece.
At Silverstone, Paolo Ciabatti,
Ducati Corse Sporting Director,
said, "It's not a secret that Marco
has won two grand prix and
shown incredible form this year.
Ideally, he would deserve a fac
-
tory bike. Naturally, the factory
bikes are signed to Pramac. He's
working very well with his team,
so we need to see if we can
come up with some good ideas
and put him on a factory bike for
next year. There are still a few
details to sort out."
On the chances of Franco
Morbidelli riding Ducati machinery
next year—possibly in VR46—Cia
-
batti added, "I think Franco had a
difficult year recently. But we think
he has a great talent. We'd like
to see him on a Ducati next year.
Let's see in the next couple of
weeks if we can make it happen."
Neil Morrison
WIND
IN THE
P44
Marco Bezzecchi looks like
he'll be off to Pramac next
year as Morbidelli slides into
his place at VR46.
Pol Espargaro Back In The Saddle
P
ol Espargaro made his MotoGP return
at Silverstone, where he finished
the first day of practice in a tentative
21st place, 2.6 seconds off the fastest
time and would eventually take 16th in
the Sprint Race and 12th in the Sunday
Grand Prix.
The Catalan, who missed the first
eight races due to a crash at Portimao
which broke his jaw as well as several
vertebrae, admitted to feeling scared, es
-
pecially on his out laps when struggling
to get heat into his rear tire.
"It was very, very stressful," he said.
"I think it was one of the most stressful
in my career. Changing direction at this
high speed, my brain was not as fast as
everything was coming. I wanted to do
more, especially the first practice, my
brain was not working fast enough for
the information I was getting. You realize
how fast these bikes are and how fast
everything comes. It's insane."
Neil Morrison
Pol Espargaro is
back in the saddle
after nearly five
months off.
