Morbidelli has been associated with Yamaha since 2019, when he joined the Petronas SRT satellite squad in 2019 having made his premier class debut in 2018 with Marc VDS Honda.
Having been resoundingly beaten by rookie team-mate Fabio Quartararo in 2019 on lesser machinery, Morbidelli bounced back in 2020 to win three grands prix and finish runner-up in the championship to Suzuki’s Joan Mir.
Morbidelli was due to start 2020 with factory machinery at SRT, but was given Yamaha’s ‘A-spec’ bike instead – which was essentially its 2019 model.
Despite his 2020 results, he remained on the 2019-spec bike and struggled for form, scoring one podium in the first half of the season before a knee injury forced him out from the Dutch GP through to the San Marino round.
When he returned, he was a factory team Yamaha rider having been signed to replace the ousted Maverick Vinales.
But since his switch, Morbidelli has struggled to match his previous results, scoring a best of fourth in his two seasons at the factory Yamaha squad earlier this year in Argentina in the sprint and grand prix.
With doubts about his future swirling for some time already this year, Yamaha has announced on the eve of the British Grand Prix that it will part ways with the Italian at the end of 2023.
“First and foremost, I want to thank Franky for his hard work and dedication ever since he started with the factory team and also long before that when he was a satellite rider for Yamaha,” Yamaha managing director Lin Jarvis said.
Source: Autosport