Factory Ducati Team Manager Davide Tardozzi has confirmed that talks with Jack Miller are at an advanced stage but have not reached a conclusion.
Miller is one of five in contention for one of the Ducati Team’s two seats from the 2021 MotoGP season and could well be the first to be signed.
His current boss, Pramac Racing Team Manager Francesco Guidotti, stated recently that he believed the factory to be “close” to finalising a deal with the satellite squad’s leading rider and his counterpart has now confirmed as much.
“We are very close to taking a decision regarding Jack, but nothing is done yet,” Tardozzi told British network BT Sport.
“We are discussing internally about that, we are discussing even with Jack, but no decisions at all are taken.
“We are thinking about Jack in the factory team and it is obvious we have to manage the situation because the riders who will join the factory team will be two of the five riders already under contract with Ducati so far.
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“Two of the five will be there and Jack did something very good in the end of the season, so we are thinking that he could be a possibility.”
The five contenders for the Ducati Team rides are incumbents Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci, Miller’s current team-mate in Francesco Bagnaia, and Reale Avintia Racing’s Johann Zarco, who was brought into the Bologna marque’s fold in the last off-season.
Petrucci and Miller have history together having both been at Pramac in 2018 when the Australian moved from Marc VDS and the Honda ranks.
The Italian became a MotoGP race winner last year at Mugello but his form tailed off dramatically in the latter half of the season, whereas Miller’s improved noticeably.
Petrucci finished sixth in the championship on 176 points, with his three podiums coming consecutively in Rounds 5 to 7.
Miller wound up eighth on 165 points but bagged five podiums, all third placings, including three in the last six races.
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