[fz_rider]

It's the year of contract renewal. Year to decide who has the 2019 seat.

Marquez, Rossi and Vinales were quick to make decision. They have their seat till 2020. So one Honda and Yamaha seats are off the table.
That leaves 'Mr. Deserving' Pedrosa, the Ducati riders, Suzuki riders, KTM riders.

Suzuki will most probably retain Rins. Once again, Iannone's seat is in trouble. Again this time it's Lorenzo. If the current form continues, Lorenzo will probably leave. He won't take a pay cut, and Ducati won't let Dovizioso go. Still, options are open for both riders.

It would be interesting, if there is an all Italian team again. Dovizioso partnering with Iannone at Ducati.
KTM needs a star, and as per rumours Zarco is about to move to KTM. I guess the Tech 3 deal with KTM, facilitated the deal.

2019 may have some reshuffling, similar to 2017.

Source: https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/ne...9-1029476/amp/

[killjoy]

With his current form, Iannone may get a seat at Suzuki itself. Cannot say for now.

Also, JL will struggle if he continues to seek a seat that will pay him his current salary...

[ashwin.terminat]

Johann Zarco moves to KTM for 2019

http://www.news.com.au/sport/motorsp...ba444bbdb481fe

This follows up on an article that claimed Marquez signed for Honda on the condition that Pedrosa stays at Honda and vetoed against Zarco signing for Honda.

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/mo...GP-news-gossip

Considering Yamaha and Tech3 splitting at the end of the season and moving to KTM power, staying with Tech3 made little sense for Zarco. But what about waiting until a decision was made on Lorenzo? Incompatible riding style for the Flying Frenchman?

[aravind.anand]

Sad that Honda had to close the doors for Zarco, as I thought he best deserved that place. KTM is new, and is learning the trade at the track now, and I am not to sure if they would be able to support Zarco with the fast steed he needs.

Ducati I guess cannot support the aggressive mid-corner moves and throttle inputs that the Frenchman's riding style seems to suggest - but still that horsepower advantage of the Ducati could really help him level his game up.

[fz_rider]

With Zarco and Espargaro confirmed, Smith is out of ride for next year. Tech 3 most probably will bring in some Junior for next season.

Meanwhile, MarcVDS will be switching to Yamaha from Honda.

[fz_rider]

Crutchlow steals the show. Obliterates circuit record enroute to P1. Pedrosa will start P2 in front of Zarco.
Marquez will start P5 whereas championship leader Andrea will start from the third row.
Both the Yamaha's were struggling for pace, starting from the fourth row.

[JayKis]

Originally Posted by fz_rider

It's the year of contract renewal. Year to decide who has the 2019 seat.

Marquez, Rossi and Vinales were quick to make decision. They have their seat till 2020. So one Honda and Yamaha seats are off the table.
That leaves 'Mr. Deserving' Pedrosa, the Ducati riders, Suzuki riders, KTM riders.

...

KTM needs a star, and as per rumours Zarco is about to move to KTM. I guess the Tech 3 deal with KTM, facilitated the deal.

2019 may have some reshuffling, similar to 2017.

Yamaha should have chucked out Rossi and given Zarco a deal.

But Rossi's politics have made sure that even Tech 3 has left Yamaha.

[badri]

Originally Posted by JayKis

Yamaha should have chucked out Rossi and given Zarco a deal.

But Rossi's politics have made sure that even Tech 3 has left Yamaha.

Rossi is a big part of Yamaha's branding / business strategy and he will continue to be so even after his retirement. Unfortunately, what it means is that a faster, younger rider will lose the opportunity to ride M1. However, it may not be all that bad for Zarco. KTM is very committed to MotoGP project and have huge budgets. Slowly but surely, their bikes are getting faster. They will also provide two factory supported machines from 2019 for Tech3. This can yield good results in year or two. Also, the initial development of KTM is done by Pol Espargaro and Bradley Smith, who are both from M1 experience (Tech3). This could ease Zarco's transition from M1 and he may not need to do major changes to his riding style.

Off late, I have been a bit disappointed with Yamaha. Despite good results, they did not extend full factory support to Tech3. When Honda and Ducati can do it why not Yamaha? Eventually, they lost Tech3, which is the best satellite team on the grid. This is going to be a big loss to Yamaha as another satellite team cannot fill Tech3's shoes. There is a rumour that the new satellite Yamaha team will be there as filler till VR46 makes it to MotoGP (after Rossi's retirement). If that is the case, their commitment levels will be nowhere near that of Tech3 and Yamaha's development will suffer. The way it stands now, the M1's development direction seems to be confusing at best with it neither favoring Rossi nor Vinales.

I think that Lorenzo's leaving Yamaha in 2017 is a much bigger loss than it seems. In my opinion, he is stronger than Vinales and Rossi. Now that Lorenzo is not doing well at Ducati, he might move to Suzuki which is on upward curve. With Marquez on Honda, Lorenzo on Suzuki and Dovi on Ducati, Yamaha's title challenge for future years will only become more difficult.

[ashwin.terminat]

Miguel Oliveira moves up to MotoGP next year with Tech3 KTM.

His performances towards the end of the Moto2 races last season were simply spectacular. Hope he's able to emulate what Zarco has managed on the Tech3 Yamaha.

[fz_rider]

Dovizioso for Ducati, Rins for Suzuki and Espargaro for Aprilia. It's raining contracts !

The second seats for Ducati, Honda, Suzuki and Aprilia remain.

[badri]

Looks like Lorenzo is having a tough time negotiating next year's ride. Only two factories seem to be in the reckoning

Ducati: Lorenzo wants to continue at Ducati to complete the unfinished job. He wants to atleast win a few races if not the title. Problem is that Ducati had to cough up a lot of money for Dovi and they do not have much to spare for Lorenzo. Also, they are keen to bring Miller on factory Duc as they believe that he has the riding style suitable for the bike.

Suzuki: Is interested in the possible Monster sponsorship that comes along with Lorenzo. Otherwise, they are keen to bring in a youngster such as Mir alongside Rins. Also, they are not keen to pay much for Lorenzo unless Monster takes a big chunk of the tab

For either of them, the money that Lorenzo is asking seems to be the problem. Even if he takes a 50% paycut (from 12 million euros), he is still too expensive for them. Lorenzo on the other hand believes that his past credentials prove that he is worth the money.

If Ducati goes with Miller or Petrucci and Suzuki goes with Iannone or Mir, then Lorenzo will be without a ride next year. Of course the second seat at Honda is still available but Honda would not suit Lorenzo's riding style.

In my opinion, Lorenzo should take a leaf out of his idol Ayrton Senna's book (who once offered to drive free for Williams because it was the best car) and compromise on his salary. Suzuki would be the best option for his style and he should not waste anymore time on Ducati if he wants more titles.

[manson]

Lorenzo to Suzuki and Iannone back at Ducati would probably be the best bets for the respective riders and teams.
JLO despite his low seasons with Ducati still has the talent to make Suzuki achieve its long awaited spotlight at the front end of the grid.

[badri]

Another piece of speculation on Suzuki seat

http://pecinogp.com/joan-mirs-future...repsol-orange/

According to this article, there is another rider (apart from Lorenzo, Mir, Iannone) linked to Suzuki seat. Could it be Dani Pedrosa? If yes, it could be really good for the Spaniard. Maybe the Suzuki will suit his small frame and weight due to it's easy handling.

The same article says that Iannone is not being considered anymore for the seat. So too is Lorenzo due to the hard negotiations and attitude towards them.

Else where there is speculation of a 3rd factory Yamaha for Lorenzo. I hope this works out. He's too good a talent to be left without a seat for next year.

https://www.gpone.com/en/blog/paolo-...r-lorenzo.html

[badri]

Honda has let their precontract option for Mir lapse.

https://www.autosport.com/motogp/new...n-on-mir-lapse

Rumors coming in that he has already decided on Suzuki.

https://www.crash.net/motogp/content...-suzuki-motogp

On the other hand, Paolo Ciabatti of Ducati gave a very revealing interview which indicates the unhappy situation with Lorenzo.

https://www.crash.net/motogp/news/89...n-t-work-jorge

Now, the rumors are strong that Lorenzo may not have a ride for next year and he may even consider retirement. This would be very unfortunate situation. He is the only rider who has beaten Marquez to title and can still do it on the right machinery

[killjoy]

JL may be riding in a non-factory Yamaha next year -

https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/ne...uzuki-1041734/