In this 2024 season, only three riders have a contract in their pocket that guarantees them a place on the 2025 starting grid. That number rose to four with the latest announcement made official yesterday: Fabio Quartararo has renewed with Yamaha for another two years.
Here's how the grid for the 2025 season develops.
Ducati Corse
Pilot 1: #1 Francesco Bagnaia – The two-time reigning world champion has signed a two-year deal with Ducati before the start of the 2024 season which will expire at the end of 2026.
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Ducati has a number of options available for its second factory rider: the main candidates are Jorge Martin (Pramac), Marc Marquez (Gresini) and Enea Bastianini (who would renew the factory renewal).
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KTM
Pilot 1: #33 Brad Binder – The South African already had an agreement in place until 2025, but a new contract signed last year extended it until the end of 2026.
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Brad Binder's current teammate, Jack Miller, expires at the end of 2024 and his place in KTM seems to be wavering, in favor of Pedro Acosta, who in Tech3 has shown himself competitive since the start of the season. Autosport/Motorsport.com understands that a clause in Acosta's contract releases him if KTM does not promote him to the factory team in 2025.
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Aprilia
Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Both Maverick Vinales and Aleix Espargaro are out of contract at the end of this year, but both seem to be the main candidates for renewal, given that Fabio Quartararo has renewed with Yamaha.
In 2023 Espargaro thought this was his last contract, however at the end of last year he still felt competitive and seems intent on continuing and not retiring.
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Yamaha
Pilot 1: #20 Fabio Quartararo – The 2021 world champion has been a key figure in the 2025 rider market and has had contact with several teams, as Yamaha's lack of competitiveness has forced him to think about several alternatives for the future.
But a salary of 12 million euros a year from Yamaha and confidence in the direction taken in development convinced Quartararo to sign the two-year renewal with the Japanese brand.
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Current Yamaha rider Alex Rins has a one-year contract that expires at the end of 2024, after breaking his two-year bond with Honda at the end of 2023. The Spaniard has a good chance to continue with Yamaha in 2025, but c 'is a potential parterre of teams that can offer him a saddle.
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Honda
Pilot 1: #10 Luca Marini – The Pesaro native struggled to find grip with a struggling Honda at the start of the season. However, Marini is thinking in the long term after signing a two-year deal with HRC leaving the Ducati VR46 team.
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Joan Mir's current contract with Honda expires at the end of 2024 and his time with the Japanese brand has not been fruitful. But the lack of viable alternatives for HRC puts the 2020 world champion in an advantageous position, assuming he doesn't want to go elsewhere.
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Pramac Ducati
Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
The current line-up of Jorge Martin and Franco Morbidelli have contracts that expire at the end of this year. Gino Borsoi, Pramac team principal, has already told Autosport that he believes Martin is playing his last season with the Ducati satellite team, waiting to move to an official team. Moto2 star Fermin Aldeguer is thought to receive one of the Pramac Ducatis next year after signing a two-year deal with the Italian manufacturer. But Pramac could collaborate with another manufacturer, so Aldeguer's placement is not a guarantee.
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LCR Honda
Pilot 1: #5 Johann Zarco – The Frenchman gave up the best bike on the Pramac Ducati grid to move to LCR Honda, but the job security offered by the two-year contract proved too tempting to give up.
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Since Takaaki Nakagami debuted in 2018, LCR's second seat has been set up specifically for an Asian rider. If this continues next year, the Japanese rider will likely stay put, provided Honda doesn't have an alternative option.
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Gresini Ducati
Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Neither of the two Marquez brothers has a contract with the Gresini Racing team that extends beyond the current year. However, Gresini still has one year left on his contract with Ducati.
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VR46 Ducati
Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Like the Gresini team, neither VR46 rider has a contract beyond the end of 2024. Marco Bezzecchi has chosen to stay with VR46 rather than move to the factory-backed Pramac team for 2024 – a move that has so far backfired against, as he struggles to adapt to the 2023-spec Ducati. As a VR46 Academy rider, should no alternative arise for Bezzecchi, it is unlikely that the VR46 will part ways with him.
Fabio Di Giannantonio was offered a career lifeline by the VR46 at the end of last year, after losing his Gresini bike to Marc Marquez, before winning his first Grand Prix in Qatar. As there are no strong candidates for the VR46 Academy, Di Giannantonio's good performances will be very useful in securing a place for 2025. VR46 is also in the process of deciding whether to continue with Ducati or collaborate with Yamaha for 2025. This the latter eventuality would probably have major repercussions on the choice of pilots to field.
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Trackhouse Racing
Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
Both Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez signed two-year contracts with Aprilia in 2023 to race with the RNF team, which was taken over by Trackhouse Racing for 2024 after the former's collapse due to irreparable problems with majority owner CryptoDATA. The contracts have been honored by Trackhouse, which will however keep an eye on the driver market.
A strong performance from U.S. rider Joe Roberts in Moto2 this year could earn him a move to MotoGP with Trackhouse next year, which would likely please new series owner Liberty Media, who wants to increase MotoGP's presence in America.
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Pilot 1: to be confirmed
Pilot 2: to be confirmed
The lineup of the KTM satellite team for 2025 is not yet clear. Augusto Fernandez was chosen over Pol Espargaro to continue with Tech3 in 2024, but he has struggled so far. Teammate Acosta shone, with the 19-year-old taking his first podium at the Portuguese GP. As mentioned, Acosta looks set to join the KTM team for 2025.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
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