After much ado, Suzuki has confirmed that they have signed Alvaro Bautista for next year’s MotoGP season. Bautista had been pursued rather intently this last month by his old 250GP boss, Jorge “Aspar” Martinez (pictured above), for his satellite Ducati team, which will be debuting next season. However, Bautista has been resistant to the idea of riding the Desmosedici, and was looking for a factory ride, which only Suzuki can provide.
Jorge “Aspar” Martinez hopes of entering MotoGP with Spanish rider Alvaro Bautista in-tow seem to have disappeared today. After calling an emergency meeting with the young Spanish rider today, Aspar had hope to be able to persuade Bautista to not sign with the Rizla Suzuki factory team, which has an exception to the rookie rule. Those hopes, however, no seem to be in vain as early indications point to Bautista instead opting to ride for the Rizla Suzuki team.