Five-Time World Champ Jorge Lorenzo Signs Two-Year Deal With Ducati (News)

Five-time World champion (two 250 cc GP and three MotoGP) Jorge Lorenzo is leaving Yamaha next year for the Ducati MotoGP team according to press releases received this morning by MD. Lorenzo won the championship last year in a close battle with Movistar Yamaha teammate Valentino Rossi, and currently lies second in championship points to Honda’s Marc Marquez in the 2016 championship series.

During his racing career, Lorenzo has consistently been one of the top riders … one that teams can count on to deliver podiums and wins. In his MotoGP career, he has occasionally gone on streaks (winning three, four, and even five, races in a row) where he seems to ride “inch perfect”, take pole and run away from the field on the first lap. He has also had his share of crashes and DNFs. He is probably the smoothest rider in MotoGP at the moment (with Max Biaggi gone), and when he can trust his tires his opponents are in big trouble.

Ducati has had mixed fortune over the years in MotoGP. At times, its bike has been so difficult to ride it has literally destroyed the confidence of otherwise successful MotoGP racers (Marco Melandri comes to mind). For a while, only the brilliant Casey Stoner could ride the Ducati near the front. Even the legendary Valentino Rossi found the machine a frustrating mystery when he spent two years with the brand.

Now, of course, with Gigi Dall’Igna at the helm, the current iteration of the Ducati MotoGP bike is certainly competitive and capable of winning (a certain double podium in Argentina was scuppered just a few hundred feet from the checkered flag a few weeks ago when Andrea Iannone took out teammate Andrea Dovizioso). Otherwise, Ducati has been on the podium at both Qatar and Austin this year. The current machine corners well and has devastating speed on the straights.

Rumor has it Ducati has put together a compensation package for Lorenzo worth in the neighborhood of $ 20 million per year. In return, Ducati will expect nothing less than a World championship from the talented Mallorcan.

Here are press releases from both Ducati and Yamaha:

From Ducati:

Ducati announces that it has reached an agreement with Jorge Lorenzo thanks to which the Spanish rider will take part in the MotoGP World Championship in 2017 and 2018 aboard the Ducati Desmosedici GP of the Ducati Team.

Lorenzo, born in Palma de Mallorca on 4 May 1987, has won five world championship titles throughout his racing career (250cc in 2006 and 2007 and MotoGP in 2010, 2012 and 2015).

From Yamaha:

Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. announces that its partnership with Jorge Lorenzo will be discontinued at the close of the 2016 MotoGP season, when Lorenzo will move on to new racing challenges.

Since Lorenzo joined the Yamaha Factory Racing Team in 2008, Lorenzo and Yamaha won three MotoGP World Championships (2010, 2012 and 2015), clinched 41 race wins and have been on the podium 99 times out of 141 races contested.

Yamaha is extremely grateful for Jorge’s contributions to its racing successes and looks forward to sharing more memorable moments during the remaining 15 MotoGP rounds of 2016, their ninth season together.

Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. wishes Lorenzo the very best in his future racing endeavours and reconfirms the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team’s full support on his campaign to achieve his fourth MotoGP title.

Having already reconfirmed Valentino Rossi for 2017-18, Yamaha will announce the future Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team riders’ line-up in due course after securing the services of the second rider.

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