Gerloff focused on WSBK in 2021 “to earn an opportunity” in MotoGP

The American was drafted in by Petronas SRT for the Dutch Grand Prix to replace the injured Franco Morbidelli, who was ruled out of the Assen weekend after aggravating an existing knee injury in training.

Gerloff got his first taste of MotoGP machinery last year in practice for the European GP when he was brought in as Valentino Rossi’s stand-in before the Italian passed a COVID-19 test to return to racing following a two-race layoff with the virus.

Becoming the first American to start a MotoGP race since the late Nicky Hayden in Australia in 2016, Gerloff finished 17th on the two-year-old ‘A-spec’ Yamaha at Assen after a battle with Avintia’s Luca Marini.

SRT could be in need of two riders in 2022 should Rossi retire as expected at the end of the year and Morbidelli moves up to the factory Yamaha squad to replace the outgoing Maverick Vinales.

This could open the door for Gerloff to race full-time in MotoGP in 2022.

“Yeah, definitely,” he said after the Dutch TT when asked if he’d gotten a taste for racing in MotoGP.

“My goal my whole life has been to race in MotoGP, so I would definitely love to be back and to be racing in MotoGP.

Garrett Gerloff, Petronas Yamaha SRT, Luca Marini, Esponsorama Racing

Photo by: Dorna

“But I’m just here for now for this race and then back to World Superbikes, which is still my main focus for this year.

“So, I want to do the best I can there and then try to earn an opportunity to come back to GPs.”

Gerloff’s Yamaha WSBK stablemate Toprak Razgatlioglu – who races for Yamaha’s factory team Crescent Racing in WSBK, while Gerloff is at the works-supported GRT squad – has already been linked to SRT for 2022.

In an interview with Autosport’s German-language sister website de.motorsport.com, Yamaha boss Paul Denning says the marque “won’t get in the way” if either Razgatlioglu or Gerloff gets a MotoGP offer.

“I can imagine that Garrett and Toprak are candidates for MotoGP,” Denning said.

“It depends on the chances and timing. We’d like to keep both of them here.

“If someone gets a good MotoGP offer, Yamaha won’t get in the way.”