The options for Jorge Martin to interrupt the 2026 MotoGP rider market
The four teams with a known MotoGP seat for 2026.
If the impasse over an exit clause in Jorge Martin’s Aprilia contract were to see the injured MotoGP champion part ways with his new team at the end of this season, it would have a major knock-on effect for riders already on the market for 2026.
Martin, still sidelined by his Qatar rib injuries, is known to have made a low-key visit to the Le Mans paddock.
It is reported that the purpose of the trip was to hold crunch meetings with Aprilia over a clause in his contract that allows him to leave halfway through a two-year deal if he is not among the ‘top places’ in the world championship by the French Grand Prix.
Since the Spaniard has been absent due to injuries for all but Qatar, where he finished the Sprint in 16th before being injured again in the grand prix, many have expressed surprise that the clause was not automatically annulled.
Either way, the fact that the clause exists, or more precisely, how to deal with it under the current situation - Martin is rumoured to have asked for another six-race extension to the clause, something unlikely to have gone down well with Aprilia - appears to have put the partnership in jeopardy.
If such differences prove irreconcilable, resulting in a shock Martin-Aprilia divorce, these are the four teams with a known vacancy for the 2026 MotoGP rider line-up...
Honda HRC Castrol
Martin’s desire for a factory team seat, after spending his MotoGP career with Pramac, sent him into the arms of Aprilia when Ducati picked Marc Marquez as Francesco Bagnaia's 2026 team-mate.
If he still values such a factory role, Martin’s only known option for next year would be the TBC seat alongside Joan Mir at the Honda HRC squad, where Martin's good friend Aleix Espargaro is now a test rider.
But LCR’s Le Mans winner Johann Zarco is already deep in discussions for the ride, with Luca Marini also in talks over a contract extension. Pedro Acosta and WorldSBK champion Toprak Razgatlioglu have also been rumoured.
Honda are reportedly Martin's preference for 2026.
Prima Pramac Racing
If Martin wanted a return to the team he knows best then Pramac - despite splitting from Ducati and forming a new partnership with Yamaha - does have a vacancy for 2026.
Unlike the other M1 riders, Jack Miller’s current contract is only for one season.
However, the Australian has been rejuvenated by his own return to Pramac, often challenging Fabio Quartararo for top M1 honours.
Razgatlioglu has also been linked with the Pramac seat.
Pertamina Enduro VR46
Is Martin missing the Desmosedici with which he won eight MotoGPs, took 32 podiums and the historic 2024 title as an Independent rider? If so, his only option would be at the Pertamina Enduro VR46 team, where Franco Morbidelli has a one-year deal.
But having walked out of Ducati based on being overlooked for the factory seat, it would be a major U-turn for Martin to ride a satellite-spec GP24.
Even if Ducati agreed to upgrade him to the GP25, Martin would be back where he had been at Pramac.
Morbidelli and Acosta are others to have been linked with the VR46 Desmosedici ride.
LCR Honda Castrol
A second Honda option, which like Pramac Yamaha would come with full factory support, would be at the LCR team, where new RC213V race winner Zarco is negotiating for a move to HRC.
Even if a Zarco-Marini swap took place, the other LCR ride might be possible, with the Frenchman's rookie team-mate Somkiat Chantra having an option for 2026.
While Honda has risen to second in the constructors (Aprilia is fifth), in money terms alone any satellite seat would be a big step down from his present factory Aprilia deal.
Who might go to Aprilia?
If Martin does make a shock exit, it would suddenly open up a coveted factory seat alongside Marco Bezzecchi.
Marini, known for his technical feedback, would prove attractive for an all-Italian line-up, rejoining the factory with which his brother Valentino Rossi took 125 and 250cc glory.
Morbidelli, already a 2025 podium finisher and former title runner-up, would be another experienced homegrown option.
Miller is a multi-MotoGP race winner and could bring valuable recent knowledge of Ducati, KTM and Yamaha machinery.
Zarco says he is committed to staying at Honda, but if he is overlooked at HRC, might he be tempted?
But if Aprilia were to promote from within their ranks, Trackhouse rookie Ai Ogura would surely be the main candidate.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
