Yamaha MotoGP team boss Mario Meregalli says the factory squad retains its confidence that the beleaguered Franco Morbidelli will eventually find a way out of the hole that he’s found himself in since joining the squad in the middle of last season.

And former racer Meregalli says that some of the signs Yamaha has seen of late hint that there might be some hope of a turnaround in the near future. But with stand-in Cal Crutchlow putting the pressure on Morbidelli to deliver results, is that hope enough to merit his seat?

Morbidelli has struggled since taking over from the departed Maverick Vinales and even though Morbidelli himself came back from serious injury and subsequent corrective surgery in the final stages of last year, he’s never looked like the rider who won three races in 2020 and fought Joan Mir for the title before eventually finishing second.

Instead, the Italian-Brazilian racer has been fighting most weekends not for wins but for points, becoming a relative fixture around the final points-paying position nearly every race.

At recent rounds Morbidelli has been more optimistic about his potential and finally looks to at least be making ground in regaining his consistency and race pace – though those improvements too often come only after poor qualifying performances.

That means he’s been left unable to fight for a good position in a championship where it’s harder than ever to make overtakes.

That progress has been enough for Meregalli to at least see some hope for the future, telling The Race after last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix that there has been a definite change in mood inside the Morbidelli side of the Yamaha garage.

“In Austria, he slowly, slowly improved, and there he was always in the top 10 or 12,” Meregalli explained.

“In Misano, he was constantly in the top 10 and I think he too expected more in Aragon but in the end, we weren’t able to provide him with what he was looking for. Here, since the beginning, he started very fast and consistent, and the pace was very good.

“Sometimes, he’s been able to do one good lap but then the consistency wasn’t good, but here he did everything well, also in the wet. I’m disappointed for him because he deserved to make a step and to be where he could be, where he’s able to be, but for sure it’s a sign. For us, it’s very important, and for sure it’s the same for him. If you get the confidence, the things come along.”

So where has that change come from? Well, according to Meregalli, it’s due to Morbidelli more than anything realising the problem that he was most up against: trying to ride the 2022 bike the way he rode his satellite Petronas Yamaha in the past – a customer machine that essentially didn’t evolve at all from when he first made his debut on it in 2019 until he left for the factory colours in mid-2021.

“He spent most of this season trying to adapt this bike to his riding style,” Meregalli explained, “then in a certain moment, he tried to adapt himself to this bike. At the end of the day, this bike has different characteristics to the one that he was used to riding in Petronas, and he tried to make it the same but he couldn’t.

“Now he’s adapting himself, he’s studying a lot what Fabio is doing. At the end of the day, that’s the way that you can ride this era of the M1.”

The need for improvement has never been any stronger for Morbidelli, either, given the return back onto the MotoGP grid with a bang of Yamaha test rider Crutchlow, who is contesting the final six rounds of the year in place of the recently retired Andrea Dovizioso.

Crutchlow has been immediately fast, too, beating Morbidelli to come home as top Yamaha in his first weekend back at Aragon before finishing just behind him at Motegi – and disappointed afterwards that only a poor qualifying performance hampered his chances of being even higher.

“I got to the starting grid and I had some alarm [on the dashboard] and I panicked,” Crutchlow explained afterwards.

“I was so close to the last corner I didn’t press the devices: I had no launch device, no launch control, and I got a terrible start. I lost places, I was already at the back, and it took a lot of time to pass the others – but when I did I was as fast as Jack [Miller, runaway race winner].

“I had the pace, but I qualified at the back and I didn’t press the devices. The problem is that when you’re with other riders, it takes you three laps to pass them on a Yamaha then you catch another and it takes another three laps. But when I had clear air after 12 laps, I was able to go. Then I caught Franky [Morbidelli] and went from a 1m46.0s to 1m46.6s immediately.”

And with Crutchlow very much highlighting that the woes of Yamaha don’t seem to simply be a case of a bad bike that only Morbidelli’s team-mate and reigning champion Fabio Quartararo can ride but rather something more specific to Morbidelli in particular, it may well mean that he’s under even more pressure than ever to deliver some results.

Lucky in that, when he joined to replace Vinales he did so on a surprise two-year deal that left him out of sync with the majority of the rest of the grid, he’s secure already for 2023.

But with Yamaha, in particular, a factory in favour of announcing its plans for the following season before the upcoming one even begins, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if it was already at least tentatively looking at riders willing to step in and replace Morbidelli sooner rather than later.

Series owners Dorna Sports have announced several new-race deals in recent weeks that will swell the calendar to 22 rounds from 2023.

On Friday it was confirmed that the Indian Grand Prix would be added to the schedule for next year, which is thought to have delayed the release of the new calendar owing to the revisions its addition necessitated.

Last week MotoGP also announced a new five-year deal to bring Kazakhstan onto the calendar from 2023 at the Sokol Circuit – though both it and India’s Buddh circuit need to be homologated.

Should both races take place, it will ensure 2023 is MotoGP’s longest season to date.

Swelling the calendar further is the addition of sprint races at every grand prix in 2023, which will mean 42 races across a 21-round season.

As part of the changes to the calendar, one of the biggest omissions is the absence of the Aragon GP, which was thought to be the fifth round of 2023 before India’s deal was confirmed.

The four Spanish races and the Portuguese GP have been signed to deals which means all five of those circuits – Aragon, Jerez, Catalunya, Valencia and Portimao – can be rotated.

The 2023 season will start later than normal on 26 March in Portugal, after the traditional season-opener in Qatar had to be scrapped as the Losail Circuit undergoes major upgrade works in anticipation of Formula 1’s return next year.

MotoGP will then continue to Argentina one week later in a surprising grouping given the logistical hurdles that have been faced with getting freight overseas in 2022.

A two-week gap splits Argentina and Austin, before MotoGP comes back to Europe with the Spanish GP at Jerez on 30 April.

The French GP takes place on 14 May before the first triple-header of the year of Italy, Germany, Netherlands on 11, 18 and 25 June.

The Kazakhstan GP takes the now-axed Finland’s original slot on 9 July before a three-week summer break, with the season resuming on 6 August with the British GP and Austrian GP on 20 August.

With Formula 1 taking Catalunya’s June slot, the Catalan GP is now on 3 September and is back-to-back with the San Marino GP at Misano.

MotoGP has grouped all of its Asia-Pacific flyaways together to ostensibly reduce the series’ carbon footprint.

The Indian GP is slated for 24 September, with the Japanese GP at Motegi the following week on 1 October.

The Indonesian GP has been moved from March to 15 October and starts the second triple-header backed with Australia and Thailand on 22 October and 29 October.

The final three rounds in Malaysia, Qatar and Valencia are also a triple-header, beginning on 12 November and ending on 26 November – the latest a MotoGP season has finished.

Zarco finished Sunday’s wet Thailand Grand Prix in fourth having piled pressure on Bagnaia in the latter stages for the final podium place.

The Pramac rider was careful in how he approached the battle, given Bagnaia is Ducati’s leading championship hope and is now just two points behind Fabio Quartararo after the Yamaha rider struggled to 17th in Thailand.

Having seen no clean way of overtaking Bagnaia, Zarco backed off to finish fourth.

But Zarco revealed that since the San Marino GP, Ducati has instructed all of its riders to not fight Bagnaia too hard for positions that were not victories or podiums.

“It's clear. [I can be] Incisive on Marc, less incisive on Pecco,” Zarco told Canal+.

“The track really dried out on the last five laps, the last four laps, and it was too late to think about winning. But still... The sooner I manage to pass Pecco, maybe I can try something and get away from [Miguel] Oliveira.

“But as there was really only one line and when we got away the bike slipped, well it was still complicated. Two laps passed, and two laps before the end we saw that the victory was not there.

“So, it was good to play it smart. These are conditions in which I am aiming for victory, because I am comfortable in these conditions.

“I was hoping that it would dry out a bit earlier, because at the beginning with a lot of water it was very complicated, you can't see the rider in front, and so even if you brake late... maybe you can get through, but you don't want to make a disaster either.

“And that's what was tricky in combat. It was a good weekend and a good race, because fourth place in conditions like this is long, it's hard, but it's nice to finish with points, a good place and almost a podium... let's say [I] left to Pecco.

“Since Misano we have some race instructions, difficult to apply when we are not fighting with Pecco, and until now it was not the case.

“But today it was the case, and for a victory Ducati doesn't block anything; for places other than podium, yes we give the advantage to Pecco. But here, in these conditions, it was the victory we had to aim for. Fourth is very good.”

Senior Ducati management was seen going straight to the Pramac garage after the race, with Zarco saying the marque’s general manager Gigi Dall'Igna thought his decision not to force the issue on third place with Bagnaia was “gentlemanly”.

“The championship is missing, I've already missed too many races [to score points], and how can I say... Gigi was very emotional.

“To have left the podium he thought it was very gentlemanly of me. But we saw that I was at ease behind, but as soon as we left this [racing] line it became risky and it would have been a shame to make a big mistake.

“So that's it. I was clearly well received by Ducati, they said a big thank you.”

Good news for Alex Marquez and for Gresini Racing, as the spaniard who switches from Honda to Ducati had good feelings in his first experience with Ducati after the first tests in Valencia and despite his first impressions he can't still make comparisons between both bikes.'I have to adapt my riding style a little bit when entering corners and approaching angle. Otherwise my natural style is more conducive to this bike, which is positive. As we know this bike works well with a lot of different riding styles and it looks like mine isn't bad on the Desmosedici. The way it accelerates is very different but I adapted throughout the day. I'll have to get more out of the bike but for now I need time to find out more', said the rider at the end of the tests, clearly pleased with his performance on the Desmosedici:

- I cannot make comparisons with the bike I had in 2022 for contractual reasons but it is different. My feelings were good from the start. I've heard from other Ducati riders that the front end of the bike can sometimes be a little sly but on a day like today, with traction on asphalt, it worked very well. I had good feelings with the front and the brakes. I feel that if I'm not too critical of a point, it's because the bike and I still have room for improvement.

Valentino Rossi’s old boss Davide Brivio insists Yamaha and Honda don’t understand how MotoGP is different to “20 years ago”.....

​​​​​​​"The problem of the Japanese manufacturers is that they have not understood that this MotoGP has nothing to do with that of 20 years ago," ex-Yamaha and Suzuki boss Brivio told Slick Magazine.

The Japanese manufacturer was unsuccessful in its bid to defend its riders’ title with Fabio Quartararo in 2022, with the French rider scoring three wins and ultimately losing the championship to Ducati’s Francesco BagnaiaWith Quartararo helping Yamaha to second in the manufacturers’ standings, the 2021 world champion was able to mask what was largely a difficult year for the brand.

Teammate Franco Morbidelli struggled to adapt to the factory M1 and managed a best result of seventh on his way to 19th in the standings on 42 points, with all Yamaha riders across the factory squad and RNF Racing scoring a combined 89 points relative to Quartararo’s 248.

Ahead of the winter shutdown, Yamaha had been testing a new engine in its bid to gain more power – though the version brought to the Valencia test last November was not met with praise by its riders.

With pre-season testing resuming in Malaysia on 10-12 February, Yamaha uncovered a largely unchanged livery featuring some new grey camouflage stripes for its M1 at an event in Jakarta, Indonesia on Tuesday.

Quartararo, who has spent the winter recovering from a wrist fracture he suffered in a motocross accident, said: “My winter break didn’t fully go as planned because I injured my hand during motocross training.

“But I’ve kept working non-stop. I’ve done a lot of cardio to make sure I’m 100% fit for the 2023 season.

“My hand injury is fully recovered now too, so I feel ready to fight for the title again. We have the new camouflage livery, which is a nice change.

“I like the new look, and it’s good to switch it up a bit. But more importantly, I am looking forward to start riding again.

“I am very curious to test the 2023 YZR-M1 in Sepang. We will work hard this season, as we always do. We have learned a lot in 2022, and now I just want to fight for the title again.”

Morbidelli added: “We are making a fresh start today, with a new look. Everything has gone back to zero and anything is possible this season, so that is an exciting prospect.

“We’ve ended 2022 with an improved feeling. Now it’s important that we do a good job at the upcoming winter tests, so we will be ready to start the season in March with the first race in Portugal.

“There’s a new race format [with sprint races being introduced], which will take some getting used to for the riders and the teams, but I see it as a positive change because it’s something that the fans will enjoy.”

Quartararo signed a new two-year deal with Yamaha last season to remain with the squad until the end of 2024, while the second year of Morbidelli’s current deal has been honoured.

Yamaha will not have a satellite entry in 2023, after RNF joined forces with Aprilia when the former couldn’t agree to a multi-year deal with Razlan Razali’s outfit.

Last year FIM president Jorge Viegas said Valentino Rossi’s VR46 team would become Yamaha’s satellite team in 2024 – something VR46 denied, claiming it will see out its Ducati deal.
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Bagnaia ended a 15-year title drought for Ducati dating back to 2007 last season, when he clinched the championship at the final round of the campaign.

The Valentino Rossi protege had to overturn a 91-point deficit at the midway stage of the season to win the title, making him the first rider in MotoGP history to have staged such a comeback.

Stepping up to the factory Ducati squad in 2021, Bagnaia is contracted to the Italian manufacturer through the end of 2024.

For this season, Bagnaia will be joined by Enea Bastianini, who has been promoted from Gresini Racing after a breakout 2022 in which the 2020 Moto2 world champion won four races and finished third in the standings.

At its launch in Italy on Monday morning, Ducati unveiled the colours it will race this season, with Bagnaia revealing for the first time his choice of the #1 plate – having previously raced #63 since he stepped up to MotoGP in 2019.

Bagnaia is the first rider since Casey Stoner in 2012 to run the #1 plate for their title defence season.

Ducati will increase its racing involvement in the MotoGP World Championship this season, as it takes over from Energica as the sole bike supplier for the MotoE World Cup.

It will also continue to field four teams on the MotoGP grid, with the factory squad joined by Pramac Racing, Gresini Racing – who unveiled its new look for 2023 last weekend - and VR46 Racing.

While the reigning champions' colours for 2023 haven't changed much from 2022, it has gained sponsorship from Monster Energy.

Ducati has inherited this from Suzuki, which quit MotoGP at the end of last year, and has forced Bastianini into a change of backing having previously raced as a Red Bull athlete.

The 2022 season wasn't without its controversies for Bagnaia and Ducati, with the former involved in a drink-driving incident in Ibiza during the summer break – for which he later apologised.

In World Superbike, Alvaro Bautista will also carry #1 on his bike after winning the 2022 title with Ducati.