The worst kept secret in motorsport has finally been formally confirmed as Ducati North America officially went public with the news that ex-MotoGP rider Danilo Petrucci will compete for its factory-backed Superbike team in the US-based MotoAmerica series.
A two-time race winner in MotoGP, Petrucci has been front and centre of speculation in recent weeks with regards to joining forces with Ducati’s top representative - the Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York team - in the MotoAmerica series.
While the man himself all-but-confirmed the plans last month, Ducati has now made the deal official.
“I’m so happy that I am coming back to race with Ducati, and I would like to give a special thank you to all the Ducati people who made this project possible,” Petrucci said.
“I spoke about this project with Eraldo Ferracci (Advisor, Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York) at Circuit of The Americas last year and all the management starting with Claudio Domenicali, Gigi Dall’Igna, Paolo Ciabatti and Davide Tardozzi, and they were really happy to have me on board again.
“I want to continue to have fun and to keep riding my bike, so I have chosen this project to make a new experience on the human side. I will live in America, this is something new and exciting for me, so I am very curious and eager to start.”
Unlike most current MotoGP riders who ascended through the GP ranks, Petrucci made the unusual transition to MotoGP from the production-based Superstock 1000 series riding the CRT-spec Ioda Racing Suter..
Solid showings on the privateer bike earned him a shot at Ducati in a relationship that lasted six seasons. Starting with Pramac Racing, Petrucci was then promoted to factory Ducati rider for 2019 and 2020, during which he secured two victories at Mugello and Le Mans.
He spent his final season competing with Tech 3 KTM before making his Dakar Rally debut with the Austrian manufacturer in January with competitive results.
