MotoGP: Luca Marini will officially leave Mooney VR46

Luca Marini will part ways with the Mooney VR46 Team

Luca Marini has officially announced that he will leave the Mooney VR46 Team at the end of the season. The Italian’s future is unconfirmed, with rumours suggesting a switch to Repsol Honda.

Marini will enter his fourth season in the premier class and leave the VR46 team banner after seven consecutive years. The 26-year-old first entered MotoGP in 2021 with the Sky VR46 Avintia Ducati team after finishing runner-up in Moto2. He has had a consistent MotoGP career, constantly battling within the top 10.

Luca Marini is having a career-best season in 2023, currently sitting in seventh position with one round remaining. His first premier class podium came in 2023, finishing second in COTA before finishing third in Qatar.

The Repsol Honda seat became vacant after the departure of Marc Marquez mid-contract this season. He will join the Gresini team and will replace Fabio Di Giannantonio. Marini’s future is set to be announced as early as Monday.

His replacement at the Mooney VR46 Team is yet to be decided, with Valentino Rossi in attendance to make the decision in Valencia. Fabio Di Giannantonio is one of the team options as well as a young rider who is yet to make his MotoGP debut.

For the full run down:

Marini said: “I spent most of my Championship career in this Team, so many of the most significant moments of my career so far are linked to this group of people. We have grown a lot together and have gained a lot of satisfaction.

“This will be my last race with the Mooney VR46 Racing Team: I thought a lot before making this decision and evaluated the new challenges I will face. I leave behind a fantastic Team that contributed to my growth and knowledge of the technical aspects and complexity that characterise this kind of sport.

“It’s time to embrace a new path with enthusiasm, without denying what has been, but with the eyes focused on the future.”

Alessio Salucci, Team Director: “I have really seen Luca grow, since he was a child, then from a motorsport point of view I had the pleasure of seeing him become one of the strongest riders in MotoGP.

“I’m happy to have shared six beautiful seasons with him in this project. From the first satisfactions in Moto2, the second place in the Championship in 2020, then the debut in MotoGP, the birth of our Team in the Top class and a 2023 where he managed to be a real protagonist.

“Luca is a professional with few equals, a technician, a true passionate enthusiast before being a rider and then a great worker. It is a pity to let him go, he will be a really tough opponent in the future, but an opportunity of this type is too much important not to be considered, and I sincerely I wish him, together with the whole Team, the very best of luck.”

Image credit: motogp.com