Petrucci confirms exit from Ducati MotoGP fold
Danilo Petrucci has clarified that he will no longer be a Ducati MotoGP rider as of next season, following Jack Miller's promotion to the factory team.
Miller was given the nod for a 2021 Ducati factory seat last week, and while his teammate's identity remains unconfirmed, it appears likely that Andrea Dovizioso will stay on board.
Negotiations between Dovizioso and Ducati came to a standstill over financial disagreements but the Italian veteran's only realistic alternative, KTM, has already expressed a firm intent to keep its existing four riders for another season.
One-time grand prix winner Petrucci clarified that the decision to promote Miller has left him out of a ride in a brief interview on Monday evening with Italian TV network TGR Umbria.
"Ducati has decided not to continue our relationship," Petrucci confirmed. "I'm sorry for this, but my objective is to stay in MotoGP and race in MotoGP. Only a year ago I was winning, so I would like to continue to win again.
"I thank them for the experience, there is still this year where we can take some satisfaction, so I am confident and I hope it starts soon."
A return to Ducati satellite outfit Pramac, where Petrucci raced between 2015 and '18, looks impossible as the team is set to hand the seat vacated by Miller to a Moto2 graduate, likely either Jorge Martin or Enea Bastianini.
That would leave Aprilia as the only viable option for Petrucci to remain in MotoGP.
The 29-year-old came close to signing for the Noale marque in 2018 before getting the nod to replace Jorge Lorenzo alongside Dovizioso for the '19 campaign.
However, such a move would probably hinge on Andrea Iannone's 18-month doping ban being upheld by the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS), as Aprilia has expressed a desire to retain Iannone if his appeal against the ban is successful.
Aleix Espargaro revealed to Motorsport.com last week he is "very close" to a new deal to stay at Aprilia, and also said he felt Ducati had been unfair to drop Petrucci.
If Petrucci cannot stay in MotoGP, it is believed he could make the transition to World Superbikes in 2021 as a factory Ducati rider, where he would likely replace Chaz Davies and be reunited with former Pramac teammate Scott Redding.
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