Aprilia has confirmed Eugene Laverty will join its World Superbike Championship winning team in 2012 and 2013 after agreeing a two-year deal with the Irishman.
Laverty has been a revelation in his first season of Superbike racing this year, the Yamaha rider shrugging off his inexperience on the 1000cc machine to win both races at Monza, only his fourth event at
WSBK level.
Scoring further podiums at
Silverstone and Magny-Cours, Laverty, who has also qualified on the front row seven times this season, will end his maiden season in either third or fourth position overall.
Even so, Laverty's future has garnered much speculation in recent weeks following the confirmation that Yamaha would withdraw at the end of the 2011 season, with the man himself saying he hadn't sealed a deal heading into this weekend's final round at Portimao.
Nonetheless, though he was originally linked with BMW Italia, Aprilia has now released a brief statement to confirm that it has inked a deal with Laverty for the next two seasons.
Laverty's acquisition will see him receive an 'official' RSV-4 in 2012.