Andrea Iannone is anticipated to make a return to bike racing with Ducati in the WorldSBK Championship.
The ex-MotoGP rider has been off the grid since the 2019 season’s final weeks, but now that his four-year suspension is about to expire, WorldSBK is probably going to be his new series.
Iannone has been closely associated with Ducati for a number of months, and following recent trips to Misano and Imola, the incredibly gifted Italian appears destined to join GoEleven Ducati.
Ducati Aruba.IT is anticipated to welcome Nicolo Buelga while Danilo Petrucci and Axel Bassani are most likely to remain with their current teams, Barni Ducati and Motocorsa, respectively. Moto2 rider Sam Lowes will also be piloting a Panigale V4 R in 2024 after his Marc VDS team revealed plans for a WorldSBK project.
The only realistic option left for Iannone is GoEleven, and the team appears committed to hiring the Italian to replace Philipp Oettl, adding yet another prominent name to the Superbike grid.
The buzz around the Iannone to GoEleven Ducati was described in this context according to Gazzetta.
“Over the weekend at Imola, Andrea met with Gianni Ramello, the team’s number one to define the next season, also financially (the cost of the operation is around 400,000 euros),” the report reads.
“The Italian would have a Panigale V4R at his disposal which, at a technical level, at least at the start of the championship, would have the same specifications as the reference team Aruba (where Nicolo Bulega will be partnered with Alvaro Bautista) as well as the Barni (who will confirm Danilo Petrucci) and Motocorsa (Bassani).”
The complete 2024 lineup for the Italian manufacturer would be confirmed if Iannone joined Ducati.
