The poker game for Francesco Bagnaia is coming to a head—Aprilia has submitted an improved offer for MotoGP 2027/28—while Yamaha is pushing him to sign.
Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia’s MotoGP team, is currently doing everything he can to convince Francesco Bagnaia to join the Noale-based factory team alongside Marco Bezzecchi for the coming season.
Ducati is about to announce the contract extension of Marc Marquez for the 2027 and 2028 MotoGP seasons. His new teammate will be Pedro Acosta, with whom Ducati has already reached an agreement. This official confirmation is also expected soon.
When Bagnaia realized that his future no longer lay with Ducati, he began to look for alternatives. Through his manager Gianluca Falcioni, he held discreet talks with other teams.
One of the first offers that reached the two-time MotoGP world champion came from Aprilia. Bagnaia initially put it aside, as after so many years at Ducati, he was more attracted to the idea of riding for a Japanese manufacturer. Honda was not an option, as they want to invest in Fabio Quartararo and build up a young second rider. This led to negotiations with Yamaha. Until a few days ago, everything pointed to Jorge Martín and Bagnaia being signed.
At the Sepang test, Bagnaia made it clear that he would not be riding for a satellite team: “I see myself as a top rider, and that’s exactly where I want to be. Fortunately, what I’ve achieved in recent years is helping me make the right decision.”
Aprilia makes a new attempt
Bagnaia thus ruled out a move to the Ducati satellite team VR46 run by his mentor Valentino Rossi. In the meantime, Bagnaia has moved closer and closer to Yamaha, which remains his first choice.
But according to information from Motorsport.com Spain, Aprilia has launched a new offensive in recent days with an improved offer and Rivola’s well-known charm.
The Piaggio Group’s racing department budget is significantly smaller than Yamaha’s. However, Martín’s departure at the end of the year will free up around four million euros in the budget. Part of this will go towards Bezzecchi’s new contract.
Around three million is considered the starting sum for the new round of negotiations with Bagnaia. For Aprilia, it would be an absolute dream to bring together the two best Italian riders of the moment, who are also friends and both belong to the VR46 Academy.
It is precisely with this argument that Rivola is trying to arouse the interest of the Ducati star. Added to this, of course, is the sporting aspect, as the RS-GP is currently significantly more competitive than the new Yamaha M1 V4.
An additional factor that could play into Aprilia’s hands is the fact that Yamaha preferred Martín over Bagnaia when selecting riders. This detail could well carry weight in the negotiations.
“Extending Marco’s contract was our top priority,” Rivola explained in early February when confirming the Italian’s contract. “Once that priority is set, we’ll see how the market develops.”
When asked about the possibility of having two Italian riders, he responded cautiously: “I’m not saying yes or no. There are interesting scenarios, but I believe that if Aprilia continues to show that we can build fast bikes, the good riders will come on their own.”
The problem, however, is time: as soon as Ducati announces the contract extension with Marquez, a wave of press releases will follow. Yamaha is pushing Bagnaia to close the deal, even though Aprilia is simultaneously trying to score points on an emotional level.
