Marco Bezzecchi
Yamaha have now delayed their decision on who will partner Toprak Razgatlioglu at Pramac in 2026 with Jack Miller left in the lurch over his future on the MotoGP grid.
Queensland, Australia native Miller faced being thrown on the MotoGP scrap heap one year ago when KTM decided to replace the 30-year-old with Pedro Acosta. But Yamaha offered a lifeline when the Japanese brand gave Miller a one-year contract to ride for Pramac in 2025.
But the confirmation of Razgatlioglu signing a two-year factory Yamaha contract to switch to MotoGP from World Superbikes with Pramac next year cast a shadow over Miller’s future. It also left Miguel Oliveira at risk, as the Portuguese’s Yamaha contract includes an exit clause.
Yamaha can release Oliveira from his contract if the 30-year-old is their lowest-scoring rider in the championship after this week’s Czech Grand Prix. It is extremely unlikely that Oliveira will prevent that clause from becoming available, as he has six points to the 41 of Alex Rins.
Michael Leverty thinks Yamaha must move on from Alex Rins with a Moto2 ‘up-and-comer’
Oliveira would need to win the Czech GP and the Sprint Race at Brno, and hope Rins fails to score to overturn his deficit. But Michael Laverty believes the writing should be on the wall for Rins regardless as the 29-year-old is not who he was before crashing at Mugello in 2023.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Alex Rins from net worth to career stats
Rins fractured the tibia and fibula in his right leg after a nasty crash during the Sprint Race at the 2023 Italian Grand Prix while riding for LCR Honda. It sidelined him for the following nine rounds, and would precede a raft of subsequent injuries since he joined Yamaha last season.
Yamaha have even seen Rins continually struggle for form in the 2025 MotoGP season, with teammate Fabio Quartararo scoring 87 points and out-qualifying the Spaniard at every race. So, Laverty thinks Yamaha have now ‘got to’ look at signing a Moto2 hotshot for their roster.
Laverty said on TNT Sports 2 (18/7, 14:52): “He’s not the Alex Rins pre-Mugello [2023]. That crash has derailed his career, in my opinion. He’s never been the same Alex Rins, the one who dominated the last part of the season when he was with Suzuki.
“Unfortunately, Yamaha have got an injured Alex Rins, who’s not at his best. [He] still has the potential to return to that form. But, right now, you’ve got to argue that you’ve got to be looking at a Moto2 up-and-comer.”
Yamaha have just rejected claims they could cancel Alex Rins’ contract and promote Jack Miller
Laverty’s suggestion that Yamaha need to move on from Rins and sign a Moto2 hotshot also comes amid reports that the Spaniard’s future is actually uncertain. Yet Yamaha have denied that Miller could replace Rins in 2026, which might have offered the Australian his salvation.
It is alleged that Yamaha are looking to terminate Rins’ contract for 2026, which could then open a space at Pramac for a Moto2 talent if Miller were to move up to the factory line-up. Yamaha’s interest in riders in the Moto2 field has also delayed a decision on Miller’s future.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Jack Miller from net worth to wife
Miller and Oliveira are now expected to learn their fate at the end of August as Yamaha are considering signing Diogo Moreira and Manuel Gonzalez to partner Razgatlioglu at Pramac. While Pramac initially opposed fielding two rookies in 2026, they are now open to the idea.
So, Miller may need to hope that Yamaha come around to Laverty’s thinking regarding Rins and release the six-time MotoGP Grand Prix winner. Neil Hodgson has also raised fears this year that Rins is nearing the end of his MotoGP career, which returned five wins for Suzuki.
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