Iannone to make Aprilia switch in 2019

Andrea Iannone will move to Aprilia next season in MotoGP after it was confirmed he will be leaving Suzuki at the end of this year.

After Suzuki announced the former MotoGP race winner would split from the team after this season he will switch to Aprilia after the Italian manufacturer announced a two-year deal with the 28-year-old.

A race winner at Ducati, Iannone took podiums early in his second Suzuki season - but it wasn't enough to keep his seat on the GSX-RR. Instead, rising Moto2 star Joan Mir will partner Alex Rins in a soon to be confirmed deal. Aprilia meanwhile have finally secured a big-name home rider, after previously pursuing Danilo Petrucci, who will step up to the factory Ducati squad from 2019 it was announced earlier this week.

Aprilia Racing team manager Romano Albesiano is naturally thrilled to secure Iannone on a two-year contract and is eager to see the Italian help push on its development with its MotoGP bike.

“"With Iannone, we have another highly talented and fast rider who is also demonstrating his value this season,” Albesiano said. “His arrival is a sign of the Piaggio Group and Aprilia's growing commitment to the MotoGP programme, where our bike has already demonstrated that it can rely on a valid technical base.

“Now we need to stay focused on the 2018 season, beginning from the next GP of Barcelona. We have a strong team that has never stopped working hard. We want to keep growing and take the RS-GP where it deserves to be this season, which is still long, with Aleix and Scott, speaking of whom, I wish to thank publicly for his great professionalism and for his consistently high level of commitment.”

Iannone will ride alongside Aleix Espargaro next season, in place of Scott Redding, who has only been at the team for six races and is now in danger of being left without a 2019 MotoGP seat.

Espargaro has suffered a nightmare run of technical issues with the latest RS-GP, but remains convinced it has the pace to be a top six bike - and possible podium contender. Aprilia's best four-stroke MotoGP result is sixth place, by Espargaro at Qatar and Aragon last season.