MotoGP Rider Market: Let's try to take stock

MotoGP Riders Market – Having reached exactly half the championship and taking advantage of the summer break, with less than twenty days left until the next stage, the Grand Prix of the Czech Republic, we take stock of the seats still free with a bit of fantasizing.

All the top riders are still tied to one year of contract, therefore: Honda Repsol, with Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa, Movistar Yamaha, with Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales, and Ducati, with Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo, are already in place. As well as Yamaha Tech3 which has confirmed both rookie riders, Johann Zarco and Jonas Folger, for next season. Everything is in order, at least according to the contracts also at KTM, where Pol Espargarò and Bradley Smith still have one year left on their contracts and the things that at least require second thoughts should remain unchanged.

Same situation at Suzuki with Alex Rins and Andrea Iannone, tied for another year, but things could be different here. In fact, the situation of the rider from Vasto is not at all clear, the results with the Hamamatsu manufacturer's bike are not forthcoming, and the many long-awaited updates have indeed improved the situation, but perhaps not enough. So for the moment the situation of the Abruzzo native is uncertain; the contract exists, we will have to see if there is the will on both sides to continue working together.

Staying on the subject of official teams, only Aprilia remains. The Noale company has both riders under contract until the end of 2018, but if on the one hand they don't want to let Aleix Espargarò escape who is doing very well, on the other side of the garage, Sam Lowes, could be at risk. The English rookie, in fact, has only collected 2 points and 4 retirements so far. The most popular replacement for the Brit was Alvaro Bautista, but the Spaniard announced today that he had renewed his contract with the Aspar team, closing the door on possible returns to the Venetian bike and increasing Lowes' chances of staying another season.

Moved to satellite teams; as already anticipated, Alvaro Bautista will continue one more season with the Aspar team, riding a GP17, while the name of a teammate is still shrouded in shadow. Rumors speak of an agreement with Ducati for a second GP17, instead of a GP16, only in case the Spanish team signs a competitive rider. The same agreement also binds the Ducati Avintia team, which at the moment has not renewed with its current riders, and which therefore has two free seats that are tempting for many.

Still remaining within the Ducati family, the Pramac team has already renewed the contract of Danilo Petrucci, who will contest 2018 with the same bike as the official team, while there are some hypotheses regarding his teammate. The saddle is currently occupied by Scott Redding, who however seems destined to leave it at the end of the season, in directions that are still unknown. A few days ago the English rider's tweets had hinted at something, but apparently it was just a joke (in which we fell with all our shoes). In place of #45 the most popular at the moment seems to be Jack Miller. In the paddock there is already talk of a first contact between the two parties, but apparently the Australian's first financial request was excessive for the Siena team. However, with the number of available positions destined to decrease more and more, the salary will also be destined to reduce, and therefore a landing for the Australian may not be that far away.

Moving on to the Honda satellite teams. LCR has already confirmed Cal Crutchlow, but Cecchinello would be interested in taking to the track next year with a second bike. The list of possibilities, given that the former driver would like a rookie, is not many; in particular, the one who seems most likely is the Moto2 rider, Takaaki Nakagami, already under contract with Honda.

Still remaining at Honda, the Marc VdS Estrella Galicia team, which has already signed Franco Morbidelli, is now looking for a second rider to join him. The Italian's teammate in Moto2, Alex Marquez, has already extended his contract in the intermediate class, so the only possibilities are either to fish outside the Marc VdS family or take a rider suggested by Honda while the opportunity of Tito Rabat to stay another year seem slim.