Official: Franco Morbidelli swaps MotoGP for factory Ducati WorldSBK seat

Franco Morbidelli has finally been confirmed as moving to the World Superbike championship with the factory Aruba.it Ducati squad for 2027.

Morbidelli will effectively swap seats with WorldSBK champion Nicolo Bulega, who is joining VR46 Ducati in MotoGP.

Fermin Aldeguer, moving across from Gresini, will be Bulega’s VR46 team-mate.

Morbidelli meanwhile will join Jack Miller and Brad Binder in switching from MotoGP to SBK next year.

Taken under Valentino Rossi’s wing early in his career, Morbidelli was the first official member of the VR46 Riders Academy.

However, he took an unusual path to MotoGP, skipping Moto3 and joining the grand prix paddock via the Moto2 class - on the back of victory in the 2013 European Superstock Championship.

A debut podium with Italtrans the following season paved the way for a move to the multi-title-winning Marc VDS squad in 2016.

Morbidelli finished fourth in the world championship before dominating the 2017 campaign, including eight grand prix victories.

Moving to MotoGP with Marc VDS for 2018, Morbidelli endured a tough debut on Honda machinery before being picked for the new Petronas Yamaha project.

Unexpectedly outshone by rookie team-mate Fabio Quartararo in 2019, Morbidelli fought back in 2020, winning three grands prix and finishing runner-up to Joan Mir in the world championship.

A further podium followed early in 2021. However, despite a mid-season move to the factory Yamaha team in place of Maverick Vinales, Morbidelli wouldn’t be seen on a MotoGP podium for another three years.

The rostrum return came on a Pramac Ducati in the 2024 Misano Sprint, a year that began with serious head injuries in a superbike training accident.

With Pramac switching to Yamaha, the bike Morbidelli struggled with in 2022 and 2023, the Italian finally joined VR46’s own team at the start of last year.

Three early podiums suggested a career revival, but Morbidelli stood on the box just once thereafter. Nonetheless, seventh overall was his best season since 2020.

Morbidelli has struggled to replicate that podium form on the satellite-spec GP25 this season. His standout result is third in the wet Jerez Sprint, but otherwise he has rarely broken into the top ten.

The 31-year-old will now aim to put his Michelin experience to use during a fresh start in WorldSBK, where he will line up alongside fellow former MotoGP rider Iker Lecuona.

Lecuona is the only rider to have beaten Bulega so far this season.

On his move to WorldSBK, Morbidelli said: “I am very happy and excited about this new chapter in my career. I thank Ducati and Aruba for this opportunity. 

"As always, I will do my best to live up to a team that has fought at the top for years and has just won the Superbike World Championship. I will do the best job possible to achieve great results together.”