Raffin denied 2018 Moto2 entry for "lack of results"

Swiss rider Raffin, 21, is in his third full Moto2 season, riding for the CGBM Evolution squad under the 'Garage Plus Interwetten' banner.

The former CEV Moto2 champion lies 19th in the points ahead of next weekend's Valencia finale, having recently taken a career-best finish of fourth place at Phillip Island.

However, despite Raffin having a valid contract with CGBM for the 2018 season, the team's application for a grid slot has been rejected by the IRTA (International Road Racing Teams' Association) selection committee.

When contacted by Motorsport.com, an IRTA spokesperson said: "The decision was based on his lack of consistent good results during his several years in the championship."

A request for comment from the team has yet to be returned.

Raffin's likely absence from the 2018 Moto2 grid means CGBM, which had been planning to field three KTM machines next season, only has guaranteed entries for Sam Lowes and Iker Lecuona.

Cardus replaces Luthi for Valencia

Lead CGBM rider Thomas Luthi will be replaced by Ricard Cardus for what would have been the Swiss rider's final Moto2 race in Valencia.

Luthi was forced to skip the previous round at Sepang after fracturing his ankle in a qualifying crash, conceding the title to Franco Morbidelli in the process, and opted to undergo surgery.

As well as missing the final Moto2 race of the season, Luthi will also be forced to skip his maiden MotoGP test outing for the Marc VDS Honda team he races with next year.

CGBM has chosen Cardus, who filled in for an injured Brad Binder at KTM earlier this year, to stand in for Luthi aboard the CarXpert Interwetten bike.

2018 Moto2 line-up so far:

Team	Riders
Marc VDS	Alex Marquez  Joan Mir
Ajo KTM	Miguel Oliveira  Brad Binder
Sky Racing Team VR46	Francesco Bagnaia  Luca Marini
Pons Racing	Hector Barbera  Lorenzo Baldassarri
CarXpert Interwetten Garage Plus Interwetten	Sam Lowes  Iker Lecuona
Forward Racing	Stefano Manzi  Eric Granado
Marinelli Rivacold Snipers	Romano Fenati
Dynavolt Intact GP	Xavi Vierge  Marcel Schrotter
Speed Up	Danny Kent  Fabio Quartararo
Tasca Racing	Simone Corsi  Federico Fuligni
Gresini Moto2	Jorge Navarro
Tech 3	Bo Bendsneyder  Remy Gardner
Kiefer Racing	Dominique Aegerter
RW Racing	Joe Roberts  Steven Odendaal
Petronas Sprinta Racing	Hafiz Syahrin
SAG	Isaac Vinales  Jules Danilo