MotoGP Silly Season State of Play, Post-Misano

Misano was the stage for a flurry of negotiating among riders, though much of it was dependent on the fate of Scott Redding. As was previously the case with Marc Marquez, Jorge Lorenzo and Cal Crutchlow, Redding was proving pivotal in which seats would be available. With Redding now firmly ensconced in the Marc VDS Racing team for the next two years, the other seats can start to fill up.

Below is a list of all of the seats currently filled and available in MotoGP, with notes on individual contracts and speculation on who could fill the empty seats. PBM has sold its grid slots to IRTA, who will be selling them to Suzuki.

The IODA team have made no announcement on their future, but they seem unlikely to continue, given the dearth of funding for the project. The grid as it stands consists of 24 bikes, two more than IRTA’s target of 22. All 24 will get a start, but the grid slots with the worst record at the end of 2015 will lose their IRTA travel allowance.

The 2014 MotoGP Silly Season as It Stands:

Rider	Bike	Duration	Status / Notes
Repsol Honda
Marc Marquez	RC213V	2016
Dani Pedrosa	RC213V	2016

Movistar Yamaha
Valentino Rossi	YZR-M1	2016
Jorge Lorenzo	YZR-M1	2016	Believed to have an option to leave after 2015

Factory Ducati
Andrea Dovizioso	GP15	2016
Andrea Iannone	GP15	2015

LCR Honda
Cal Crutchlow	RC213V	2015
Jack Miller	RC213V-RS	2016	Miller has a contract directly with HRC for three years, but will ride for two years at LCR. The Open class Honda has been renamed, and will be known as RC213V-RS

Marc VDS Racing
Scott Redding	RC213V	2016	The Marc VDS Racing team has a contract for three years with HRC, and a contract for two years with Redding. The bike will be kitted with Ohlins and Brembo

Monster Tech 3 Yamaha
Pol Espargaro	YZR-M1	2015
Bradley Smith	YZR-M1	2015

Drive M7 Aspar
Nicky Hayden	RC213V-RS	2015	Hayden has a contract, but it is dependent on his wrist being fully recovered from surgery. If Hayden is forced to retire, this seat will also be open. In that case, current rider Hiroshi Aoyama would have a chance to remain.
Eugene Laverty?	RC213V-RS	?	Laverty has signed a proposal with Aspar, and his departure from WSBK to move to MotoGP has been confirmed, but his destination has not yet officially been announced.

Forward Yamaha
Stefan Bradl	Forward Yamaha	2015
???	Forward Yamaha	?	For the second seat, Forward are looking for anyone who is prepared to bring €250,000 to race. That could be Alex De Angelis.

Gresini Aprilia
Alvaro Bautista	Aprilia ART	2016
???	Aprilia ART	?	Marco Melandri had been in the frame for the second Aprilia seat, but the Italian looks set to remain in World Superbikes, preferring to race for wins rather than develop a slow bike. Who will take his place is unclear

Suzuki
Aleix Espargaro	Suzuki XRH-1		Suzuki is yet to officially confirm their intention to race, but the rider line up is said to be fixed. The only question is, what happens to Espargaro and Viñales if Suzuki decide against coming back in 2015…
Maverick Viñales	Suzuki XRH-1	2017

Pramac Ducati
Yonny Hernandez	GP15
Danilo Petrucci/Loris Baz?	?	?	Ducati are keen to sign the popular Petrucci, Dorna want a Frenchman. Baz is undoubtedly fast, but the short-sighted MotoGP team managers can’t see past Baz’ height (1.92m).

Avintia Ducati
Hector Barbera	Open GP14	2015	The Avintia Ducatis will run as full open class entries, and be used to develop the bike with the unified (spec) software.
Danilo Petrucci?	Open GP14	?	If Petrucci cannot be slotted in at the Pramac team, then Avintia could be another place where the Italian could fit. Alternatively, the second Avintia rider could be filled by Dorna, depending on their TV needs.

Cardion AB
Karel Abraham	RC213V-RS	?	The Cardion AB team will continue to race for as long as Karel Abraham wants to, and for as long as he feels he can be (relatively) competitive in the Open class.