How VR46 is handling its MotoGP conflict of interest with Bezzecchi

Marco Bezzecchi’s MotoGP contract with VR46 expires at the end of this year. The owner of the Ducati team for which he competes, and with which he is negotiating a contract extension, is also the same corporation that represents him.

In his second season in MotoGP, the 24-year-old Italian has picked up the baton left by Enea Bastianini to become an unexpected guest in the title race on a year-old bike. Having won two grands prix (Argentina and France) and scored four podiums in total, Bezzecchi is third in the overall standings heading into round nine on the first weekend of August at Silverstone. He sits just one point shy of Jorge Martin (Pramac) and 36 behind championship leader Pecco Bagnaia.

That leap in quality has put him in the market spotlight with a view to 2024 while magnifying the complex management situation for VR46. In most negotiations, the rider’s representatives seek to close the best deal for their clients, both financially and in sporting terms. This generates a tug-of-war with the team executives, who are obviously also looking out for their own interests.

But what happens when the two sides are the same? The solution introduced by VR46 at the beginning of the year was to split the operational part of its structure into two distinct bodies: Team and Academy.

On paper, this formula makes sense, although it does not entirely solve a problem that is evident in the case of Bezzecchi and his short-term future. However, in the approach taken by the two divisions, it is clear that the first priority is the rider’s well-being in all its dimensions, above the preferences that the Mooney-backed team and the Academy may have.

Under normal conditions, the natural evolution for a rider who has made the step forward Bezzecchi has this year would lead his agents to seek a berth for him at Pramac. Paolo Campinoti’s team acts as a sort of second factory team for Ducati and receives more support than anyone else from the Borgo Panigale manufacturer. However, that possibility is not the priority according to Uccio Salucci, team boss at Mooney VR46.

Bezzecchi has become a regular challenger this year on his year-old VR46 Ducati, and could stay on next year

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

For his part, Bezzecchi insists that he feels at home in his current environment and that he sees no reason to change. Rossi’s right-hand man naturally wants to keep Bezzecchi However, Salucci has another deal underway, in this case with Ducati, to try and grow its standing as a satellite team of the Bolognese constructor.

“We have asked Gigi [Dall’Igna, Ducati general manager] for an official bike for Marco in 2024, the same Marini had last year,” explains Salucci in conversation with Motorsport.com. “And we have also asked for a contract directly with the factory. Basically, the same conditions that [Jorge] Martin and [Johann] Zarco have.

“I hope that Ducati will give us the backing we deserve to be able to keep…