Tuesday’s confirmation that Jack Miller has signed a two-year contract with the Pata Maxus Yamaha World Superbike team has officially started the latest influx of MotoGP talent into the production-bike class.

With Brad Binder, Alex Rins and Frankie Morbidelli likely to join the list in the coming weeks, it’s a good time to look at how the World Superbike grid is shaping up for 2027.

Aruba.it Factory Ducati: Lecuona and Morbidelli?

The most coveted seats in the paddock. Ducati have signed Iker Lecuona to a two-year contract extension and all the signs are that he will be joined by Frankie Morbidelli, essentially as a VR46 MotoGP seat swap with Nicolo Bulega.

Morbidelli has been a bit of an enigma during his time in MotoGP. There’s no denying his talent and, as with many GP veterans, much will depend on whether he sees this as an exciting new venture or just a way to extend his career for a few years.

Barni Spark Ducati: Montella and Vierge?

We know that Barni Spark have extended their relationship with Yari Montella and that Alvaro Bautista will not be continuing with them.

The rumours are that this is going to be Xavi Vierge’s destination after leaving Yamaha. He had discussions with Motocorsa last season before deciding that the factory Yamaha ride would be his best option. Financially that still proved to be the case, as he (more accurately his sponsors) would have needed to bring 400k+ Euros to Motocorsa; however, you’ve got to believe he’s looked on with regret at what Alberto Surra has been able to do on that Panigale.

The other Ducatis: Rins Coming In?

Currently there are five other Ducati seats, although that could be increased to six.

We know that Sam Lowes is under contract with the ELF Marc VDS Team; however the sad passing of team owner Marc van der Straten in July has created some uncertainty over future plans. Earlier in the year it was already being rumoured that their Moto2 team would be disbanded and Aron Canet would move across to form a two-man WorldSBK team. Instead, Canet has been released from the remainder of his contract and will stay in Moto2 next season with Fantic. Despite this, the signs are positive that the team will continue with Lowes in WorldSBK next season.

We may still get another Ducati on the grid as Team Goeleven are trying to put together the budget to expand to a two-rider set-up. Current MotoGP rider Alex Rins looks set to join, bringing a six-figure sum with him for the privilege, but the team are trying to find a way of keeping current rider Lorenzo Baldassarri as well.

As for Motocorsa (Alberto Surra), MGM Optical Express (Taz Mackenzie) and Superbike Advocates (Tommy Bridewell), it’s expected that they will continue with their current riders, budgets pending. Of course, the late introduction of the Superbike Advocates team in 2026 shows that things can change quickly with the independent teams.

Pata Maxus Yamaha: Miller Time

Vierge’s departure cleared the space needed to accommodate Jack Miller. He’s going to be a fantastic addition to the WorldSBK paddock and hopefully will be the spark needed for Yamaha to start turning things around after a few testing seasons.

Andrea Locatelli is under contract for 2027, which arguably is fortunate for him considering how surprisingly poor his 2026 season has been. Crew chief Giulio Nava, who was brought in from Ducati over the off-season, was moved to a new role ahead of this past weekend’s round at Magny Cours to try something different. It ended with Loka having a bizarre crash in Race 2 to cap off another dispiriting weekend.

Locatelli had been a real positive for Yamaha in the past two seasons, and he did get on the podium in July at the prestigious Suzuka 8 Hour race alongside Miller and Katsuyuki Nakasuga, so the team will hope that he can recapture that previous good form with Miller pushing things along as the lead rider.

The Other Yamahas

As for the other four Yamahas, Remy Gardner and Stefano Manzi both signed two-year contracts with the GYTR GRT Team to cover 2026 and 2027, so they look set to remain in place. The Motoxracing team plans probably are as much about whether Bahattin Sofuoglu and Mattia Rato can bring in the sponsorship money needed.

Bimota by Kawasaki: Alex and Axel Again

Bimota signed Alex Lowes and Axel Bassani to new contracts in the middle of June. Both are deserving of their new deals based on their performances over the past couple of seasons in building up the Bimota to being the ‘best of the rest’ behind Ducati.

The only question I’d raise is whether Bimota could have been more ambitious? You would have to think that such a competitive bike would be an attractive option, especially with the MotoGP orphans adding to the rider market. Maybe budget considerations made sticking with Lowes and Bassani the best approach, and it’s certainly not a bad one, but it seems a bit curious that they went so early rather than exploring the market more first.

Kawasaki (by Kawasaki): Gerloff Stays in Green

Around the same time as bimota announced their 2027 riders, so the Kawasaki team confirmed that Garrett Gerloff would continue in Team Green for a third season.

There were no questions about this signing. Gerloff has done an excellent job having been reunited with Crew Chief Les Pearson for the 2026 season. The American is riding the wheels off the Ninja ZX-10RR and his mid-pack battles have produced some of the best racing of the season.

The frustration is that there doesn’t appear to be much movement on the hopes of adding a second bike to the grid. Manuel Puccetti runs a very professional team and it would be a shame if Kawasaki don’t build on this season and find a way to support the team to field a second rider in 2027.

Honda HRC: Who Else Wants It?

The safe assumption is that Honda will continue with current riders Jake Dixon and Somkiat Chantra.

Both have had their debut WorldSBK seasons badly disrupted by injuries, so having some continuity and going again in 2027 would make sense for all parties. Reportedly their current contracts do include an option for 2027.

Unfortunately, the other part of this decision is that convincing anyone else to want to get on the Fireblade is going to be a tough sell. Honda’s continued struggles are as disappointing as they are baffling. It doesn’t make sense that the might of HRC have been consistently unable to get their bike to be competitive in WorldSBK spec for years on end, but that’s the problem they still have to solve.

ROKiT BMW Motorrad: Binder Joining?

Whilst nowhere near Honda levels, you could make an argument that the BMW factory seats are not the most desirable on the grid either.

However, they have the benefit of two recent WorldSBK titles behind them to help convince riders that the potential is there in the bike. That appears to have helped them bring Brad Binder into the team for 2027.

I’m of the opinion that the difficulties faced by KTM – on and off the track – over the past couple of years have made some people forget just how good a rider the South African is. This is someone who finished 6th, 6th, 4th and 5th in the MotoGP standings between 2021 and 2024. Binder also comes across – like Miller – as someone who will relish the challenge of coming to a new championship and tearing things up on a superbike.

Whilst the standings might not show it, Binder should also take heart from the flashes of potential showed by former (and about to be new) teammate Miguel Oliveira in his debut season. After his early podiums, I believe Oliveira would have put together a competitive season without his nasty crash at Balaton Park, even if the odd difficult weekend like they just had in France was still always possible with the notoriously fickle M 1000 RR.

It was announced in France that Oliveira has decided to stay with BMW on a new multi-year contract. With the German manufacturer being the only team to bring a significant upgrade to their bike in 2027, and two high quality riders on board, don’t underestimate how competitive BMW will be next season.