Puig expects Jorge Lorenzo to stay with Honda amid Ducati links

Three-time MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo has been linked with a move away from Repsol Honda, but Repsol Honda chief Alberto Puig has cooled talk of an exit.

Published : Aug 10, 2019 10:58 IST

Jorge Lorenzo has been linked with a move to Ducati.
Jorge Lorenzo has been linked with a move to Ducati.
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Jorge Lorenzo has been linked with a move to Ducati.

Repsol Honda chief Alberto Puig has revealed there have been no discussions with Jorge Lorenzo over his future with the MotoGP team.

Three-time MotoGP champion Lorenzo swapped Ducati for Honda at the end of last season, but has struggled to find any form so far in 2019.

Currently injured, Lorenzo sits 16th in the standings, 191 points behind team-mate and runaway leader Marc Marquez.

READ| Moto GP Raceweek: Austrian Grand Prix in numbers

Reports have emerged linking the Spaniard with a return to Ducati, but Puig insists his team expect the 32-year-old to be competing for them in 2020.

"I don't think about it because I only know what we know, and we know that we have a contract with him for two years, that ends in 2020," Puig said ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix.

"So I really don't know what the paddock rumours are or what people are saying, but I can only stick to our plan and the Honda plan which is to have him for this year and next year."

Puig did concede, however, that the situation could change before the end of the campaign.

"In this paddock you are never surprised. I'm used to being in this environment and I know these [rumours] can happen," he added.

"But for me, the only important thing is when the rider comes to you and tells you what he has in his mind.

"I never had any information like this from him, so I have to believe that things are okay. I'm not even thinking if he will leave."

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