Pramac warn Ducati that Jorge Martin could be lost to Honda

Martin’s desired step up from Pramac to the official Ducati team was lost when he narrowly failed to claim last season’s MotoGP championship.

He has already warned that this year, the last of his current contract, will be his last as a satellite rider even if he must look further afield for a factory bike.

“In my opinion he will go,” Pramac CEO Paolo Campinoti told Gazzetta. 

“He could go to Honda, they need a strong rider. 

“Among the youngsters he is certainly the one who gives the most guarantees."

The arrival of Luca Marini at Honda this year on a reported two-year deal means that, in 2025, they will have just one potential vacancy, the bike which Joan Mir currently has.

Campinoti confirmed that 2024 will definitely be Martin’s last with Pramac.

"That's for sure,” he admitted.

Martin reportedly had a contractual clause stipulating that he must be moved into the factory team if he won last season’s title, which he ultimately failed to do.

He has admitted that he prepared leathers to represent the official Ducati team at the postseason Valencia test, just in case.

But Enea Bastianini will, in the end, remain in his place alongside the champion Francesco Bagnaia.

A year earlier, Bastianini was chosen above Martin for a promotion onto a factory bike.

Campinoti balances Martin’s annoyance with his own delight to keep a top rider: "Absolutely yes. I was last year and I am this year too. 

“But these are choices that Ducati makes, they are the ones who decide who to put or not to put in the official team. 

“Last year at a certain point they returned to the force with Jorge, but doing it during the season wasn't a very positive thing, because it caused a bit of distraction."

Martin’s title dream vanished amid anger at Michelin for his tyre trouble in Qatar.

“When you're there and you know you have an almost unrepeatable opportunity, it's clear that you feel bad,” Campinoti said. 

“But these are things that can happen, the tyre is part of the good and bad luck of a season. 

“I don't think it's a single event that can affect a twenty-race championship."

Martin will have Franco Morbidelli as his new teammate this year, replacing Johann Zarco.