Roberts and Suzuki split.

After much rumour, it has today been officially announced that 2000 world champion Kenny Roberts Jr will not have his Suzuki contract renewed for the 2006 season.

Roberts has been with Suzuki since 1999 and - in his first two seasons with the factory team - won eight 500cc grands prix, the 2000 world title and was on the podium a further nine times.

However, from 2000 onwards Roberts and Suzuki have struggled to match the likes of Honda, Yamaha and (latterly) Ducati - particularly with the introduction of the four-stroke MotoGP class from 2002 onwards. As a result, Suzuki have been criticised for failing to build a competitive bike, while Roberts has been accused of lacking motivation when faced with fighting for lower positions.

KR Jr's best results since 2000 have been a third place at Valencia 2001, another third place at Rio 2002 and then a second place at July's rain soaked British Grand Prix at Donington Park. Roberts is the second highest rider in Suzuki's list of grand prix starters - behind only 1993 World Champion Kevin Schwantz.

No announcement has yet been made on Roberts Jr's future plans - although he is rumoured to have a ride available with his father's Team Roberts outfit. Kenny was due to make his final appearance for Suzuki at the last round of the season in Valencia, but the wrist and hand injuries sustained at Phillip Island have ruled him out of that event.

"I could easily sit here and talk for hours about all the great times I have had with Suzuki; they have always been honest and have given me their best," said Kenny, the only rider to have beaten Valentino Rossi to a premier-class title. "I will of course miss many people.

"Over the years I have made many friends here at Suzuki, from the engineering level, to the management and of course within the team. I have many individual people to thank, but that is for another time. I am eternally grateful for what Suzuki has done for me. They have given me the chance to win a world championship and I wish them the best. I know they can achieve whatever they wish to do," he concluded.

"It has been a great honour to work with a Kenny during my first season in MotoGP," added team manager Paul Denning. "His knowledge and understanding of a racing motorcycle is better than any other racer I have met. He has great respect from all at Suzuki for bringing them the world championship in 2000 and for the tireless work he has put into developing the GSV-R into a competitive race bike. He will always be regarded as a great champion within the history of Suzuki.

"Suzuki has made this decision because it must look towards the future and the new breed of motorcycles and racers that are due to arrive on the scene," he explained. "We need to place Suzuki back at the forefront of grand prix racing and we must take a fresh and new approach in order to achieve that.

"Kenny would no doubt have achieved strong results and contributed more to the development of the GSV-R, but we must look further than 2006 and start to make plans for the next generation of machines in 2007 and beyond.

"On behalf of Suzuki Motor Corporation, we would like to thank Kenny for his skill, his dedication and his commitment to Suzuki since 1999. Together, Kenny and Suzuki became world champions and that is something that will never change.

"On a personal level, I would like to thank Kenny for helping me and the team to learn so much during 2005. We will miss his consummate skills and his partnership. We very much hope that Kenny will stay in contact with us in the future - much like Kevin Schwantz, Kenny will always be one of Suzuki's champions at all levels," Denning concluded.

John Hopkins has already signed to stay at Suzuki for 2006 and 2007, but who will replace Roberts next year remains unknown - with the likes of Chris Vermeulen, Alex Hofmann, Shane Byrne, James Ellison - and several others - all linked to the now vacent seat.