2025 VR46 candidates: di Giannantonio, Aldeguer, Morbidelli... Toprak?

With Marco Bezzecchi leaving VR46 to join Aprilia in MotoGP, Valentino Rossi's team will need at least one new rider next season.

MotoGP.com fired the names of some potential 2025 candidates at VR46 team manager Pablo Nieto, starting with Bezzecchi’s current team-mate Fabio di Giannantonio…

Fabio di Giannantonio

The 2023 Qatar winner joined VR46 this season after losing his Gresini seat to Marc Marquez. 

Diggia is currently ninth in the world championship, as the second-best GP23 rider after Marquez, but is also being linked with a potential seat at Pramac Yamaha.

“Yeah, for us it's important that Fabio - we have to start talking for next season. Now, it's true that everything changed a little bit. But anyway, I think Fabio is making a very good job this season.

“It’s the first year with our team. It's the first time that we get a rider out from the Academy and this is very important for us. But he's making a very good job. So it's interesting for us.”

Fermin Aldeguer

Moto2 star Fermin Aldeguer is already signed with Ducati for a place in MotoGP next season but has no confirmed team. If Pramac leaves for Yamaha, Aldeguer would need to be slotted in at either VR46 or Gresini.

“First of all, we have to talk with Ducati because we know that Fermin has a contract with Ducati [for 2025], so Ducati have to take care about him. This is the most important thing. Of course, we have to talk with Ducati about the future.

“We have to talk about with Ducati about everything. And one thing that we have to talk with Ducati also is about our contracts and everything, but it's also about the riders.”

Franco Morbidelli

Former Yamaha title runner-up Morbidelli moved to Pramac Ducati this year. 

After missing all of pre-season testing due to a head injury, the Italian has made decent progress, including a pair of top-six finishes last time at Mugello. 

Morbidelli is also a VR46 Academy rider.

“In the end [Morbidelli] is very interesting for us. Franky made very good results in the past. He’s a rider from the Academy. We know that he can do a very good job.

“This year, he's making a very good job [on the Ducati], race by race he is coming a little bit better. So of course, Franky is one rider that we know very, very well. He never worked with us in the team [before], so he can be also an option for VR46.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu

The World Superbike star is again being linked with a move to MotoGP.

Although manager Kenan Sofuoglu has always insisted on a factory team seat, perhaps he’d make an exception for a full factory bike at VR46, should the Pramac Desmosedicis be redistributed.

However, even if a satellite team is acceptable to Razgatlioglu, there would still be obstacles such as the Red Bull/Monster clash.

“In the end, I think if all the riders that can, come to MotoGP, it’s good for the championship. It's true that [Toprak] is very fast in Superbike, we know that he can make a very good job here.

“But at the moment we have so many riders on the table to try to think for next season. We have to think about everything. But Toprak at the moment is not in our idea.”