The move of Luca Marini to Repsol Honda in MotoGP now seems to be just a matter of an official announcement. The Mooney VR46 Racing Team considers the rider as lost as it is already looking for a replacement at the Moto2 grid.
Uccio Salucci, one of the leaders at VR46, stated to MotoGP.com that a decision will soon be made: ‘We want to recruit a young rider from Moto2. There are some potential candidates. A decision will be made in the next three to four days’.
Thus, Fabio Di Giannantonio is excluded from the list of options, and regardless of the chosen one, Salucci is aware that payment will be necessary: ‘If you lose a rider of Marini’s caliber in November, then you have to buy back riders from the Moto2 teams. We’ve talked to everyone and not just one team, not just [Fermín] Aldeguer. Definitely, we have to pay something, but that’s how it works in our sport’.
Valentino Rossi’s friend also addressed the possibility of Tony Arbolino being the chosen one: ‘I like Tony. He’s a very good rider. He’s very young and Italian. He is one of the candidates. But we’re not just talking about Tony and Fermín. There are other fast riders that I really like. This will become clear in the next few days. We won’t have to wait long’.