MotoGP: KTM does not execute Petrucci's renewal clause

On June 25 of last year KTM announced what was an open secret: the signing of Danilo Petrucci. What was not known and was a real surprise is that the Austrian manufacturer hired the Italian rider to send him to its satellite team, Tech3 , where he did not quite show the qualities that led him to win two MotoGP races with Ducati .

In the contract, KTM kept the option to unilaterally renew Danilo Petrucci for a second year, in 2022, a clause that Motorsport.com has learned expired this Monday, May 31, and that Mattighofen executives have not activated .

As of June 1, Petrucci can freely negotiate his future for next season and although KTM has not commented on his intentions with the Terni rider, everything indicates that he will not continue beyond the Valencia Grand Prix next month of November.

After the first six races of the season, Petrucci is 14th overall and his two best results are 5th place at Le Mans in a flag to flag race, and 9th on Sunday in Italy, where up to four drivers crashed who were ahead.

Iker Lecuona , Danilo’s teammate and who is entering his second season at Tech3-KTM , also ends his commitment at the end of the season and continues to depend on an improvement in his performance before the manufacturer makes a final decision on his future.

One of the signs of KTM ‘s lack of confidence in the Tech3 pairing is that the official riders, Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder , have used a new chassis since the Jerez tests and have released a new fuel that makes the RC16 fly, something that neither Petrucci nor Iker have had access to at the moment.

“I ride the usual bike, it hasn’t changed at all. I have what I have and you have to make do with it. They (Oliveira and Binder) are going very fast and both Danilo and I are far behind,” Lecuona told Motorsport.com .

Gardner and Fernández, ready for the jump

Mattighofen ‘s sports managers follow very closely and with great enthusiasm and satisfaction the evolution of their two riders under contract in the Moto2 intermediate class: the leader of the World Championship, Remy Gardner , winner last Sunday of the Italian Grand Prix, his first triumph of the course, and the second classified in the general, the surprising rookie Raúl Fernández , who at only 20 years old has already accumulated two victories in the course of his debut, and who was second on Sunday after leading practically the entire race.

Right now the idea is to place Remy and Raúl in the MotoGP Tech3 team in 2022, although KTM will wait until the summer break, after the Assen race, to make the final decision, while Fernández’s representatives sound out the market. in case there were options in other factories for next season.

The photos of Danilo Petrucci’s 2021 season in MotoGP

Danilo Petrucci, KTM Tech3, Iker Lecuona, KTM Tech3

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Photo de: Dorna

Danilo Petrucci, KTM Tech3