Valentino Rossi advocates factory Ducati seat for his prodigy

Valentino Rossi has advocated a seat for Franco Morbidelli at Pramac Ducati as a replacement for Johan Zarco.

Morbidelli is out of a contract at Yamaha as the Japanese team has already announced his replacement for next season. With Jorge Martin already on a contract for next season and Zarco moving to LCR Honda, there is a seat vacant at Pramac.

Valentino Rossi has claimed that Morbidelli would be a good choice at Pramac alongside Jorge Martin. The team gets factory Ducati bikes, same as the works team and that could only mean a position where the Italian rider could finally express himself.

Franco Morbidelli did have an impressive start to life in MotoGP. He even ended up finishing the 2020 season as runner-up to Joan Mir. However, since then, his career has taken a turn for the worse.

A deteriorating Yamaha, combined with being teammates with a supreme talent in Fabio Quartararo, has not worked in Morbidelli's favor as he was shown the door this season.

Valentino Rossi however feels that a factory Ducati seat will help Franco Morbidelli become more of a contender. As per Crash.net, he said:

"It would be fantastic for Franco to go to Pramac. He would also ride a factory bike. It would be a great possibility. Franco was good at Yamaha, in the second year he beat Fabio Quartararo and became [runner-up in the world championship]. Yamaha's technical delay is making them pay. Morbidelli can win races, the best thing for him is to get on a Ducati.”

Morbidelli in agreement with Valentino Rossi on a possible Pramac Ducati seat

Franco Morbidelli agrees with Rossi's comments about potentially getting a seat at Pramac Ducati. The Italian has been rated very highly by Rossi for a number of years. Many pundits in the sport have also claimed that Morbidelli was just not in his element in Yamaha and a new coat of paint might just be the best thing for him.

Morbidelli himself agreed with Rossi's suggestion and while answering a question from the media about his future, he said:

“Vale said it all, I agree with him. You need to be patient. Please relax.”

A Morbidelli-Martin partnership at Pramac could be one explosive and competitive combination if the Italian has not lost his mojo. It will be interesting to see what happens next as a second chance will surely do Morbidelli a world of good.