Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK is official: Aruba.it Racing – Ducati has signed the 2017 Moto2 world champion to ride the factory Panigale V4 R in 2027, alongside Iker Lecuona. He takes the bike Nicolò Bulega rode to this year’s Superbike title, and Bulega is already headed the other way.
Bulega’s move to MotoGP was confirmed on September 9, when he was named to the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team alongside Fermín Aldeguer. Morbidelli has ridden for that team since 2025. Bulega called the move “a dream.” In effect the two riders trade places. A Superbike star moving up is a story SBI has covered before, with Toprak Razgatlioglu’s move to Pramac Yamaha, but this one has a MotoGP rider heading the other way.
Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK: The Seat He Is Taking
Bulega clinched the 2026 championship at Cremona in front of home fans, so Morbidelli inherits the bike that just won the title. Lecuona, whose deal SBI reported as extended through 2028 after a first season that included a Donington win, stays as the other half of the line-up.
Morbidelli was not the only rider in the frame. In July Alex Rins said he had nothing in MotoGP for 2027 and was looking for a WorldSBK ride, with Bulega’s Ducati among the seats he was watching. In late August Morbidelli told WorldSBK he had “spoken with someone” about a move.
Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK: What He Brings From MotoGP
Morbidelli, 31, was born in Rome on December 4, 1994, and came up through the VR46 Riders Academy. He won the European Superstock 600 title in 2013 and the Moto2 world title in 2017, the first Italian to do it, then made his MotoGP debut with Honda in 2018 and took Rookie of the Year.
From 2019 he rode for Yamaha, won three races and finished second in the 2020 championship. He joined Ducati in 2024 with Prima Pramac Racing and has ridden a Desmosedici GP for VR46 since 2025. Ducati counts 228 starts across 14 seasons, with 11 wins, 29 podiums and eight pole positions.
Team principal Stefano Cecconi says his experience should matter most with the new tyres, where Morbidelli can give “precious feedback.” Ducati Corse general manager Luigi Dall’Igna cites his ‘deep knowledge of the Ducati environment.” Both stress that he stays on a Ducati, which should keep his method consistent.
Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK: The Michelin Question
The announcement never names the tyre. The relevant fact is that Michelin becomes WorldSBK’s sole supplier in 2027, replacing Pirelli, which has supplied the series since 2004 and stays through the end of this season. WorldSBK announced the five-year deal, covering 2027 through 2031, in June 2025. Michelin is also the MotoGP tyre, so the likeliest reading is that Morbidelli arrives with Michelin experience.
That matters because every WorldSBK rider will be learning the same new tyre at the same time. The Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK move starts with years on Michelin in MotoGP, a reference point most of the Superbike paddock lacks. How much of it carries over from a MotoGP front end to a production-based Panigale is the open question, and nothing in the announcement answers it.
Franco Morbidelli WorldSBK and the Swap With VR46
The announcement gives no contract length, no first test date and no livery, so those details are still to come.
Two riders have traded places between Ducati’s two paddocks: a world champion rising to the premier class for the first time, and a former MotoGP runner-up moving down to Superbike. Both stay on Ducatis, and 2027 will show what Ducati gains from having each of them on the other side.
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