Johann Zarco, Jorge Martin form all-new Pramac Ducati line-up for 2021 MotoGP
Pramac Racing will enter the 2021 MotoGP World Championship season with an all-new rider pairing after confirming it has signed seasoned racer Johann Zarco together with highly-rated youngster Jorge Martin to its team.
Hot on the heels of Ducati’s announcement it is promoting Pecco Bagnaia and Jack Miller from the Pramac set up to the full factory team next year, the satellite outfit will blend a combination of experience and youth with Zarco and Martin.
Zarco’s appointment represents a return to prominence for the Frenchman following a tumultuous 12-18 months that saw his relationship with KTM break down just six months into a two-year deal, before securing a last minute deal to join the Ducati fold.
Subsequently placed with Avintia Racing, it has proven to be a shrewd move for double Moto2 World Championship Zarco, demonstrated by his stunning pole position and podium in Brno on a year-old Ducati GP19 in what was a major breakthrough for relative minnows Avintia Racing.
It is a performance that has duly earned him a promotion to Pramac Racing for 2021, which will see both himself and Martin given use of the latest specification Ducati ‘GP21’.
Martin’s signing ends weeks of speculation over a deal that was reportedly agreed at the start of the delayed 2020 MotoGP season in July.
The 2018 Moto3 World Champion, Martin is in the midst of his second year of Moto2 competition, which yielded a maiden victory in Austria even if an unfortunate two-race pause after contracting the coronavirus has dented his title aspirations.
To date he is the only rookie to be confirmed for 2021, though Avintia Racing is expected to confirm his Moto2 rival Enea Bastianini for next season as well.
