> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.the-race.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Steiner's first MotoGP signing follows his F1 blueprint - URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/steiners-first-motogp-signing-follows-his-f1-blueprint/ - Published: 2026-08-26T10:11:59.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-26T10:11:59.000Z - Description: Luca Marini's announcement as a Tech3 KTM MotoGP rider from 2027 onwards marks the first signing of the team's Guenther Steiner era - Author: Valentin Khorounzhiy - Tags: MotoGP, #luca-marini, #image-center-right, #ktm, #tech-3, #secondary_feature_3 Luca Marini's announcement as a Tech3 KTM MotoGP rider from 2027 onwards marks the first signing of the team's Guenther Steiner era - and, in that sense, it is fitting. After fielding KTM-contracted riders for several years, Tech3 is pivoting to having riders under its own contractual control (note how Marini was announced only by Tech3 and not by KTM) - and Marini was not thought to be particularly high on KTM's shopping list for its satellite team. But he is a quintessential Steiner signing, and a rider who - even before the actual talks had started in earnest - seemed to be the inevitable fit for Tech3. When the cracks first started really showing in the Maverick Vinales relationship with Tech3 and KTM, I remember mentioning Marini to Steiner - and being very surprised when he indicated they had not yet met (with the hint being that Marini wasn't hugely on the radar). In the end, Marini more or less had to be the choice. During his time in charge of the Haas Formula 1 team, Steiner very clearly favoured long-time continuity with established 'midfield professionals' - see Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen, who were only eventually phased out due to budget - over 'upside' bets or rookies or any left-field options. Tech3 is more established in MotoGP than Haas has ever been in F1, so Steiner has showed a keenness on a rookie signing (which he never wanted at Haas). Senna Agius is the favourite for that rookie spot. But two rookies was a no-go, even though there were suggestions KTM had an interest in this. For Steiner, having a benchmark of established quality was paramount. Ideally, this would have been one of the incumbents, Enea Bastianini or Maverick Vinales. But Vinales has become non-viable through injury and what can only be described as 'baggage'. And Bastianini, also through 'baggage', had long made up his mind towards going somewhere else - he just never seemed truly settled as a Tech3 KTM rider, initially hamstrung by the adaptation from the Ducati and subsequently never truly at ease on a bike he found to be too much of a 'bucking bronco'. It is curious that Steiner has sounded so dismissive of Brad Binder - expected to go to World Superbikes as a BMW rider - as another option. But Binder and Marini seemed like the only logical riders to pursue, and now Marini has got the nod. He is not a flashy, buzzy signing by any means, but he does seem fundamentally misunderstood - to the point where a lot of people exist under the impression Marini has stuck around by virtue of being Valentino Rossi's brother. Certainly for this signing, that is completely irrelevant. Marini has stuck around because he has a paddock-wide reputation for possessing a keen engineering mind, and because he scores points and keeps equipment intact. He has outqualified Honda team-mate Joan Mir only once all season. He is, however, outscoring Mir 86 to 29. If Tech3 wants someone who will maximise its chances at stealing a win here or there, Marini is absolutely not the guy. But after the travails of the Bastianini-Vinales line-up, all the irritation the various dramas surrounding both are known to have caused, the appeal of Marini is only too clear.