Franco Morbidelli admits he’s ‘always struggled’ with one thing in MotoGP ahead of VR46 debut

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Franco Morbidelli will be the number-two rider at the VR46 team this season. His teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio will have the privilege of the 2025-spec Ducati.

Morbidelli has moved over from Pramac, where he partnered the eventual world champion Jorge Martin. Despite riding the latest machinery, he wasn’t a factor in the title fight.

In fact, the Italian eventually finished ninth in the championship, some 335 points off his teammate. That denied Pramac any chance of retaining their teams’ title.

Morbidelli was pipped not only by Gresini duo Marc and Alex Marquez, but also by KTM’s Brad Binder, Tech3’s Pedro Acosta and Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales. With Pramac switching to Yamaha, he’ll don new colours this season, but retain the same bike.

Still, there were some grounds for encouragement in the second half of the season. Between Aragon GP and the finale in Barcelona, he bagged five top-six finishes in nine races.

Franco Morbidelli admits he takes a long time to adapt to new MotoGP bikes

On Saturday, VR46 became the latest team to unveil their 2025 livery. They followed the Ducati factory squad, who removed the covers on Monday.

At the launch event, Morbidelli was asked whether keeping the same bike would be an advantage. Indeed, he started to look more comfortable towards the end of the campaign.

Perhaps wary of generating more pressure, the 29-year-old didn’t cast a judgement either way. But he did accept that spec changes have consistently destabilised him in the past.

He also pointed out that he rode the 2019 Yamaha at SRT during the 2020 season, and went on to finish as the runner-up behind Joan Mir. That remains his best premier-class showing to date.

“I don’t know if it will be an advantage or a disadvantage, because every year is always different,” he said, via GPOne. “I have certainly always struggled in my career to adapt to new things, it always took me too long, so it’s positive to keep the same package.”

Valentino Rossi has already set his sights a new rider for VR46

Morbidelli may be a product of the Valentino Rossi academy, but he knows he must deliver this year. Having only signed a one-year deal, his seat is at risk.

Indeed, Rossi has already held talks with Pedro Acosta. The Spaniard wouldn’t be able to join the factory Ducati team after the arrival of Marc Marquez alongside Francesco Bagnaia.

But a spot at VR46 on a current-spec bike would be the next-best thing. And Acosta could soon be available amid KTM’s financial crisis, increasing the risk for Morbidelli.