MORBIDELLI’S LAST ITALIAN HOME RACE AT MISANO AS HE SETS HIS NEXT STEP

Misano’s San Marino and Rimini Grand Prix is set to become a deeply emotional stop on the 2026 MotoGP calendar, with Franco Morbidelli preparing for what will be his final MotoGP home race in Italy. The VR46 rider and his teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio both arrive with clear motivations: Morbidelli wants to turn a difficult recent outing into a statement in front of his country fans, while Di Giannantonio is looking to erase the disappointment of Aragon.

Morbidelli’s weekend carries extra weight because it follows the confirmation, announced since Tuesday, that the 31-year-old will leave MotoGP after the 2026 season. His next step is already mapped out: in 2027 he will move to the Superbike World Championship, taking the seat at Aruba.it Ducati that will open up when Nicolo Bulega heads to VR46 in MotoGP. With that transition confirmed, Misano becomes Morbidelli’s last chance to race at home in the premier class.

The Italian also has strong personal ties to the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. Speedweek highlighted that some of his most memorable MotoGP moments have come there, most notably his first MotoGP victory. In September 2020, Morbidelli won at Misano, a result that helped lay the foundation for what was described as his most successful season in MotoGP. That year he scored three wins and fought for the world title, finishing second behind Joan Mir.

More recently, Morbidelli returned to the podium at Misano in 2024, placing third in the Sprint. With those references in mind, the atmosphere around his final Italian home race is expected to be intense. Speaking ahead of the event, Morbidelli said: “Misano is always incredibly. The atmosphere is magical and the home crowd is always something special.” He added that the team is arriving “highly motivated” after showing potential in Aragon, even though the weekend did not produce the desired result. “We come highly motivated to our home race because in Aragon we had good potential. Unfortunately we couldn’t get a result from it, but this weekend we want to strike back.”

Morbidelli’s stated aim is straightforward: “We want to have a clean weekend. It will be important to get the maximum out of everything and do a great job, because together with Brazil this is the most important race of the year for me.” He also noted that he has been gathering additional track experience during the season, including Superbike test sessions and participation in the World Ducati Week.

In the championship context, Morbidelli enters Misano in 16th place with 53 points. After Aragon, the focus is on showing the potential that he and his Ducati can still deliver.

Team-mate Fabio Di Giannantonio, meanwhile, is approaching Misano with a different kind of urgency. After Aragon, the Roman rider is determined to bounce back, having finished well below what he felt he could achieve. Speedweek reported that Di Giannantonio is currently 48 points behind the championship leader with 208 points total, and that he is only 24 points away from the top three.

Misano is also a circuit where Di Giannantonio has previously found success across categories. Speedweek recalled that he finished third in Moto3 there in both 2017 and 2018, took second place in Moto2 in 2019, and returned to the podium in MotoGP last year with a third-place Sprint finish.

Di Giannantonio said he is “really fired up for Misano.” He framed it as a must-win mindset for a home event: “It’s our home race and we have to push as hard as possible. Riding in front of your own fans, your family and your friends gives you extra motivation to do even better.” He also pointed to the value of last year’s information, saying: “We’re coming with very good data from last year, when we were really strong. That will certainly make our work easier. But the lessons from Aragon can also help, even though it wasn’t an easy weekend.”

For VR46, the Misano weekend is more than just a race meeting. The team’s base in Tavullia is only a few kilometers away, and the publication noted that VR46 has enjoyed strong results at the circuit in recent years, including second places in both the Sprint and the Grand Prix in 2023, plus another Sprint podium last year.

As part of the home-race build-up, VR46 will also wear a special team shirt featuring designs that connect the flags of Romagna, San Marino, and Italy—further underlining how significant Misano is for both riders and the team.