Dovizioso to leave Ducati at the end of 2020 MotoGP season
Andrea Dovizioso and Ducati will not renew their partnership for the 2021 MotoGP season, bringing an end to an eight-year partnership in the premier class
Dovizioso joined Ducati back in 2013 and was an instrumental part in bringing it back to the front of the field, winning 13 races between 2016 and 2020 and finishing runner-up in the championship for the past three seasons.
While Dovizioso remaining with Ducati for 2021 looked a likely scenario at the start of the year, talks between both parties stalled during the coronavirus lockdown.
Ducati wants to move away from big-money rider contracts in light of the financial crisis caused by coronavirus, while Dovizioso has been unwilling to take a substantial pay cut.
On Thursday at the Red Bull Ring, Ducati boss Davide Tardozzi said a decision on Dovizioso's future would be taken after next weekend's Styrian Grand Prix.
However, after a meeting between Dovizioso's manager Simone Battistella and Ducati on Saturday morning in Austria, he has confirmed Dovizioso has taken the decision not renew his deal with the team for 2021.
"We communicated today to Ducati that Andrea does not intend to continue for the next few years," Battistella told Sky Italia.
"He now wants to focus on this championship, on these races, and let's say we don't feel the conditions are right to continue in the future."
Dovizioso's manager confirmed that no proposal was ultimately tabled by Ducati for 2021, adding: "In practice we have never talked about the economic part so far.
"There have been no proposals or negotiations [for 2021]."
Battistella said in June that a sabbatical was an option for Dovizioso in 2021 should he not be handed an acceptable deal for Ducati.
PLUS: Why doing an Alonso won't work for Dovizioso in MotoGP
He added: "Andrea intends to continue running, of course, if he finds a suitable programme and proposal to do so."
With the only factory ride outside of Ducati up for grabs being at Aprilia, which is currently waiting for Andrea Iannone's doping case to be resolved in October before finalising its 2021 plans, Dovizioso now looks unlikely to remain on the MotoGP grid next year.
Commenting on Dovizioso's potential future plans, Battistella notes that no other talks have taken place owing to there being no options currently.
"I have already had a look around, but I do that every day because it is
my job," Battistella said.
"There are no alternatives at the moment, so there are no negotiations with
other teams."
Ducati sporting director Paolo Ciabatti has since released a statement, saying: "We met Simone this morning here at Red Bull Ring and realised that unfortunately there are not the conditions to continue our relationship with Dovi beyond the end of the current contract.
"Ducati and Andrea will now fully concentrate on the remainder of the 2020 season, starting from tomorrow's Austrian GP, with the common goal to add more wins to the 13 wins already achieved together and fight for the title until the end of the championship."
Austrian MotoGP: Vinales tops FP3 on drying Red Bull Ring track
Lorenzo "may still be" on the table for 2021 MotoGP ride with Ducati
IMSA champion Jarvis to contest full ELMS season with United Autosports
Reigning IMSA Sportscar Championship title-winner Oliver Jarvis will contest the European Le Mans Series with United Autosports alongside Formula 2 convert Marino Sato, in addition to the World Endurance Championship.
20 years on: Porsche’s 911 GT Daytona 24 Hours giant-killing relived
IMSA’s new GTP class for LMDh cars had a more auspicious debut last weekend than the Daytona Prototypes that arrived in 2003. Back then, they were humbled by a GT Porsche 911, which won the Floridian sportscar classic by nine laps.
Entries open for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award story
Entries have opened for the 2023 Williams Autosport Engineer of the Future Award, with budding motorsport engineers invited to apply for the revamped prize.
What really happened when F1 drivers went on strike?
Being a Formula 1 driver is one of those dream jobs, but that doesn't mean everything always runs smoothly.
The other Suzuki signing that could transform Honda's MotoGP form
Following Suzuki's decision to quit MotoGP, both of its former riders have landed at Honda for 2023. But perhaps its biggest signing from the now-defunct team could instead be a highly-rated technical manager. Is Ken Kawauchi the right man at the right time to steer HRC back to glory?
How the MotoGP paddock has offered refuge to Suzuki's former team
Suzuki's unexpected departure left more than 40 professionals virtually jobless for the 2023 MotoGP season. But that human drama has been successfully corrected by the paddock itself, with most former Suzuki crew-members absorbed into other operations
How one MotoGP team went from title fights to losing it all in four years
The Petronas Sepang Racing Team came into MotoGP with a bang in 2019 as regular front-runners, with wonder rookie Fabio Quartararo mounting a title challenge in 2020. But it all went wrong for the Razlan Razali-helmed squad as the team changed hands and tumbled down the order - and RNF Racing plans to right this in 2023
Is MotoGP's comeback king ready to reclaim his throne?
Marc Marquez’s sixth premier MotoGP title seems a long time ago given the injury woes he has faced in the three years since. At the end of a fraught 2022, in which he had a fourth major operation on his right arm, the Spaniard speaks exclusively to Autosport
How MotoGP’s underachiever is working to reverse its fortunes in 2023
As European manufacturers emerged as the strongest force in 2022 in a changing of the guard for MotoGP, one powerhouse couldn’t quite match the feats of Ducati and Aprilia. Its motorsport chief tells Autosport why this is and what it is doing to become a consistent frontrunner in the class of kings
How MotoGP riders are preparing for the physical stress of sprint races
With the expansion of the calendar to 21 grands prix and the introduction of sprint races, the 2023 MotoGP season will take the riders to almost 1,300 kilometres of competition more than this year, a factor that forces adjustments in their physical preparations.
The Ducati rider who is much more than just the brother of a MotoGP legend
Surname pressure is something many have had to deal with in their motorsport careers. And while Luca Marini doesn’t have that, his familial relation and the team he rides for in MotoGP have cast a brighter spotlight on his progress. But, as he has shown in 2022 – and as he reveals to Autosport – Marini is so much more than just the brother of a legend
Ranking the top 10 riders of MotoGP 2022
The 2022 MotoGP season was another hotly contested championship, with Francesco Bagnaia emerging as the title winner after the campaign went to the wire. Autosport picks out the 10 best performers of the season
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.