Jack Miller has been announced as joining the factory Ducati MotoGP team for 2021, confirming widely-reported speculation that he would be stepping up from satellite team Pramac Ducati to the Bologna manufacturer’s number one squad.
Miller will only have one confirmed season with the team, being offered a one-year deal with an option for 2022.
That marks a departure from the norm with most factory contracts in the class running to two years, but it mirrors the deal signed by Danilo Petrucci in 2018.
Speaking after the deal was announced, Miller said: “First of all I want to thank warmly Paolo Campinoti, Francesco Guidotti and all the Pramac Racing Team for the great support I have received from them in the two and a half years spent together.
“It is an honour for me to be able to continue my MotoGP career with the Borgo Panigale manufacturer and I would like to thank all the Ducati management, Claudio, Gigi, Paolo and Davide, for having trusted me and given me this incredible opportunity.
“I look forward to starting riding again this year, and I am ready to fully commit to the responsibility of being an official Ducati rider in 2021.”
Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali, known for his reputation as being a key part of the decision-making process within the race team as well as the company as a whole, added that he believes Miller is up to the task.
“Since he arrived in the Pramac Racing Team, Jack has grown steadily, proving himself one of the fastest and most talented riders in the championship. So we are happy that he has agreed to ride the official Desmosedici GP bike of the Ducati Team next year.
“We are convinced that Jack has all the right skills to fight continuously for the positions that matter, in every race, starting already this season with the Desmosedici GP20 of the Pramac Racing Team, and taking a further step forward next year thanks to the support of the Ducati Team.”
It seems increasingly likely that Miller will replace Danilo Petrucci within the team as Andrea Dovizioso moves closer to renewing his deal.
Petrucci’s two offers right now are a factory seat with Ducati in the World Superbike paddock, most likely replacing Chaz Davies, or joining Aprilia – a move that could depend on the outcome of Andrea Iannone’s final appeal against his doping ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
