Bumper four-year deal for Bagnaia as Aprilia MotoGP move announced
Aprilia has announced the long-awaited news that Pecco Bagnaia will join its factory MotoGP line-up in 2027 alongside Marco Bezzecchi on a bumper four-year deal.
It is the latest in MotoGP's silly season announcements now that the impasse on future news has been lifted following the factories' long-term, 'Concorde-esque' agreement with series bosses last week.
The news comes as no great surprise given that it has been something of an open secret in the paddock for months. The Race first reported that the double world champion had picked Aprilia over Yamaha during pre-season testing in February, and Bagnaia is believed to have put pen to paper for the Italian brand soon after.
However, the length of the deal certainly is unusual, with Bagnaia committing to four years with Aprilia, a deal set to keep him a part of the line-up until he turns 34 in 2030.
The news means that, with Wednesday's announcement of a contract extension for Marc Marquez at Ducati, and the subsequent news that Pedro Acosta would replace Bagnaia, Aprilia becomes the second factory squad to confirm its full line-up for the next two years.
"Michele Colaninno and I share the same vision of supporting Italy, which is why we both thought of Marco and Pecco together for the next chapter of Aprilia Racing," said Aprilia boss Massimo Rivola of himself and parent company Piaggio's CEO.
"That is why welcoming Pecco fills us with pride and gives Italian sport a further boost internationally. We will give him and his family a warm welcome, but first we will try to beat him! Having a multiple world champion is a responsibility we can't wait to take on."
It means that Bagnaia joins current championship leader and close friend Bezzecchi, whose own contract extension with Aprilia was publicly announced in February, just before the unofficial hiatus on rider announcements that has subsequently meant no further news until this week.
It means that the next piece of the puzzle likely to fall into place now is at Yamaha, with Jorge Martin departing the factory Aprilia squad to replace the Honda-bound Fabio Quartararo. Another Aprilia rider, Ai Ogura, will leave satellite team Trackhouse to become Martin's team-mate in blue.
