Miguel Oliveira: BMW WorldSBK move “the right option”, MotoGP door “still open”

Mandalika on Thursday saw Miguel Oliveira made his first public appearance since confirmation that he will leave MotoGP to join BMW in WorldSBK from 2026.

Having lost his Pramac Yamaha seat to BMW’s reigning World Superbike champion, Toprak Razgatlioglu, Oliveira faced a choice of continuing his full-time career by leaving MotoGP or becoming a factory test rider.

Oliveira did not name the MotoGP test riding option, but Aprilia, where he previously raced in RNF/Trackhouse colours, was rumoured.

“I was also offered the opportunity to be a test rider, and the decisive factor for me was the desire to compete. That fire is still very much on, and the only way I could do it was in World Superbike,” Oliveira said in Mandalika.

“So what I tried to do was to look for the best competitive tools to do it. Team and bike. And BMW felt like the right option for me.”

But the five-time KTM race winner made clear the door is not shut on a MotoGP return.

“I'm on a one-year contract with BMW, and I don't say the ultimate goal is to come back. But for sure I leave the door open, because MotoGP has been my life for the past 15 years of my racing career,” said the Portuguese rider.

“So you don't close the door and lock it completely. There is a door open for sure, and who knows what the future can hold for me if things go well in Superbike.

“And also, ultimately, I think it can be my choice what to do. So we'll see. I think World Superbike has also huge potential to grow as a series. So why not look for that at the moment and leave the door open in MotoGP.”

The Portuguese star confirmed that he had picked BMW over Yamaha for WorldSBK.

“I tried to look for the best team, best bike possible. And BMW was my choice," he said.

"Yamaha offered me, they tried to get me… I would say I couldn't see the potential in the Yamaha that I saw in BMW, in terms of bike performance. And that was it. 

"And they know because I talked with them and I told them exactly the reasons why.”

Nonetheless, Oliveira admitted that judging the BMW’s potential is also far from easy, with double champion Razgatlioglu leading the standings but team-mate Michael van der Mark only 13th.

“I think that’s the biggest question mark, even for BMW. But it's hard to assess from the outside because you see things on TV, but you don't actually know how it feels on the bike, what the data looks like.

“So it's shooting a little bit in the dark. But it is a competitive bike because it's winning races. So you cannot do that on a bike which is not competitive. So I guess that's the reasoning I'm taking.”

Oliveira starts his final five rounds as a Yamaha MotoGP rider looking to beat a best finish of ninth.

Team-mate Jack Miller was selected to remain alongside Razgatlioglu for 2026.