Valentino Rossi’s VR46 squad “doesn’t agree” with Ducati’s decision to cut down the supply of factory MotoGP bikes to just three next season.

Team boss Alessio ‘Uccio’ Salucci has expressed his disappointment over Ducati only providing the outfit with a single example of the GP25 in 2025, when Pramac has enjoyed two of the latest-spec bikes in the last two seasons.

VR46 had originally hoped that it would get the two GP25s originally earmarked for Pramac after Paolo Campinoti’s squad’s move to Yamaha, but Ducati has since rejigged its MotoGP programme in order to keep costs under control.

As part of the shift, the Italian marque will go down from having a total of eight bikes in 2024 to six next year, with only half of those being built to the latest specification — two headed to the factory team and the remaining one to VR46.

It puts Ducati in a slightly disadvantageous position to the likes of KTM and Yamaha, which have already vowed to produce four identical bikes across their teams, as well as possibly Aprilia and Honda.

While VR46 is happy to have been chosen by Ducati to replace Pramac as its number 1 satellite outfit, there is also discontent among the team that one of its riders will have to be content with what will be a year-old GP24 in 2025.

“We have a super team and some awesome guys, we will never be a factory team because we don’t build bikes, but when the riders come they find a fantastic situation,” Salucci told Motorsport.com.

“Even [Ducati MotoGP chief] Gigi Dall’Igna compliments us on the management. In fact they chose us as a reference team, starting from 2025 because Pramac left, but Ducati had already chosen us for 2027 as a reference team, independently of Pramac.”

Uccio Salucci, VR46 Racing Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

He added: “In the GP25, I don’t really agree with Dall’Igna, because we will have only one updated bike, while I would have wanted two as we have always done.

“But unfortunately or fortunately it is Ducati who decides, we will have one and we will make do with it.

“We will try to make it work in the best way, even if the other manufacturers are organised with four and we have three. But this will become even more unique because there will be two red ones and one of ours.”

Motorsport.com revealed earlier this week that Fabio di Giannantonio had agreed a fresh two-year deal directly with Ducati that will see him continue with VR46 until the end of the 2026 season.

As part of the contract, which is yet to be signed, Di Giannantonio will get to ride a GP25 in 2025, having had to do with year-old machinery so far in his MotoGP career.

The identity of his team-mate remains unclear as Marco Bezzecchi prepares to join Aprilia alongside Jorge Martin, but current Pramac rider Franco Morbidelli has emerged as a leading option.

Salucci has expressed an interest in signing Morbidelli, who has long been a part of the VR46 Academy and is a close friend of team owner Rossi.

Asked if he would like to hire Morbidelli, who is not expected to continue with Pramac next year after it joins forces with his former employer Yamaha, Salucci said: “I would love to! I love him so much, so I would love to work with him and I have been saying this for a long time.

“Maybe next year could be the one where it becomes a reality.

“Yes, we would give a chance to another guy from the Academy, but it is still a long way off because there are so many things to fit together. I would love to, but let’s wait a few more weeks.”

If Morbidelli moves to VR46 in 2025, the Italian will be riding the same GP24 he currently races at Pramac.

Valentino Rossi’s VR46 squad made its MotoGP premier class debut in 2022 after agreeing a deal with Ducati for one factory-specification bike that went to Luca Marini, and a year-old bike that went to Marco Bezzecchi.

Motorsport.com understands that VR46 has the option to renew with Ducati for 2025 and 2026, with the option set to expire at the end of May, but the team would have to settle for two year-old Desmosedici bikes for its riders.

Despite having maintained contacts with KTM, the clearest alternative has always been Yamaha, given Rossi’s historical connection to the Japanese manufacturer.

But this possibility, which was never completely ruled out, has been losing strength in recent weeks, to the point that VR46 and Ducati look set to reaffirm their alliance, with an extension that could even be announced this weekend at the American MotoGP round in Austin.

“Yamaha is my second home. But, to begin with, what it should offer us is a more competitive motorcycle. The Ducati is a great motorcycle and its performance is very high. We owe it to our partners. Change is not easy,” Salucci said, speaking to Motorsport.com.

Uccio Salucci, VR46 Racing Team

Photo by: Media VR46

If VR46 sticks with Ducati, the pressure would shift to Yamaha, as it has been trying to establish a satellite team ever since its partnership ended with the RNF squad at the end of 2022.

But with Yamaha’s top-speed weakness still obvious, it is believed its best way to secure a second squad alongside the factory team was to provide a financial package to support a satellite squad.

However, so far this hasn’t been sufficiently attractive to a team like VR46 which picked up three MotoGP wins in 2023, all with Bezzecchi in Argentina, France and India, plus multiple podiums across both its riders.

VR46 has also been able to secure greater sponsorship backing, having taken on Indonesian state-owned energy company Pertamina as title sponsor from this season.

Rossi’s squad has an ideal scenario in mind: stick with Ducati but regain a factory-spec bike for 2025. But the current hurdle to that is Ducati’s plan to provide only four of those bikes (two to the factory team and two to the Pramac squad), and that set-up would require Pramac boss Paolo Campinoti to voluntarily give up one of its factory bikes for 2025.

While this scenario seems unlikely, Salucci isn’t giving up: “Pramac is Ducati’s reference satellite team. VR46 does not seek that status. What we want is to grow and have an official motorcycle next year.”